


Lockwood Part 1

by Jadders92



Series: Lockwood [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, Beauxbatons, Black Lake, Boggarts, Bulgaria - Freeform, Challenges, Champion - Freeform, Dementors, Dragons, Durmstrang, F/M, Family, Friendship, Gen, Hogwarts, Hope, Lies, Love, Manticore, Mental Anguish, Ministry of Magic, Origin Story, Original Characters - Freeform, Owls, Pantronus, Quidditch, Thestrals, Triwizard Tournament, Wandless Magic, Wolfsbane, Yule Ball, first year, upset
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-10
Updated: 2016-06-14
Packaged: 2018-07-14 06:21:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 34
Words: 91,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7157108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jadders92/pseuds/Jadders92
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>First year at Hogwarts, it's abundantly clear that one student stands out from the rest. Professor Lupin soon becomes fascinated, something of a guide, a friend, a protector and more through the seven years of school. He is more than fascinated beyond school and it makes for an interesting life.</p><p>I will be posting separate parts as the rating will change to mature further through the story so look out for that! </p><p>EDIT: Part 2 has been uploaded and Part 3 is on its way! Remember to leave comments! I love reading them!</p><p>If you would like to contact me, the way to do so is through this email: jadders92@hotmail.com</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. My New Wand

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is just something I've been working on in my spare time. It's rated general for now, but that will probably change or I will simply create a new part. But let me know what you guys think and enjoy!

Hogwarts had always been home. It was sanctuary and safety, something every witch and wizard understood and sorely missed when it was over. Before I even stepped foot into the warm, welcoming castle, I showed promise. Picking up on simple pieces of magic and trying to understand how it worked before putting it into practice. I was never seen without a book in hand and I went through most I could get my hands on. My father worked as a Healer in St Mungo’s so keeping up with simple medicinal potions and spells was easy enough and with my mother working as an Auror, I was always listening in on the latest dark creature she had battled.

Before Hogwarts, life didn’t seem real, it was like one big adventure. My brother, a fourth year Gryffindor, who had dark brown messy hair and crisp blue eyes, would tell me stories of his first year at Hogwarts and how intimidated he was by the sorting hat. He told me all about the different houses and I was terrified I’d be sorted into Slytherin; I didn’t want to be the odd one out in the family. 

‘Most on mum’s side were Gryffindor,’ Darren said, as we walked through Diagon Alley, picking up my first set of school books. ‘Dad has a lot of Ravenclaws on his side, so I guess either one of those would make them proud. I mean there’s a few Hufflepuff and one or two Slytherin, but it’s mostly those two.’

We went into Flourish and Blotts and I happily scanned through the sections, while Darren went around collecting what I needed for that year. I always appreciated the things he did for me, always making sure I was happy and healthy and had enough to keep me occupied. He had been especially helpful that summer, looking after me when my parents were away and explaining things I didn’t understand in some of my books. 

‘I think you’ll be in Ravenclaw.’ He said, wandering up behind me and selecting a book off the shelf.

‘Why?’ I frowned.

‘Because you’ve got the biggest brain in the world and Ravenclaws are smart as they come.’ He smiled down at me. I could see why he got so much attention and why he was so popular, he was fairly good looking and kind to everyone he came across. ‘You’ll be great don’t worry.’ Darren winked at me as we paid for my books. ‘Lockwood’s are made of tough stuff and even if you are in Slytherin, I’ll still love you.’ Darren put his arm around my shoulders and we left with my new school books. Next stop, Ollivander’s.

We wandered into the old, dusty shop and I glanced around at some of the wands on display, they all looked so elegant and I desperately hoped mine would be the same.

‘Miss Lockwood.’ A voice from over the desk floated towards me. ‘I wondered when you’d arrive and it seems you are accompanied by your brother. How are you Darren?’

‘Very well Mr Ollivander, thank you for asking.’ He smiled his winning smile.

‘Good, let’s begin.’ I looked at Darren who just raised his eye brows in excitement. Ollivander went into the depths of the shop before bringing back a small stack of boxes. ‘Now, most of your family favour wands made from either Rosewood or Ebony and cores of Dragon Heartstring and Kelpie Hair, though I believe your father’s was Mahogany with Kelpie Hair so, possibly mahogany would suit? We shall see.’ Ollivander said, with a hint of curiosity. He took out a dark wand and handed it to me, I felt it shake and tried to wriggle free of my grip before it was snatched away by Ollivander. We tried maybe thirty of forty different wands, before he gave me a strange look and wandered away to get another wand. 

‘Possibly,’ Ollivander mumbled as he came back. ‘This one.’ He unwrapped a pale looking wand that had a beautifully sculpted handle. I took it and felt like the wand was talking to me, there was a warm buzz that ran up my hand, my arm, all the way through my body. ‘Elder with Phoenix feather. That wand has been here for nearly two hundred and fifty years and not one single witch or wizard has been able to match its power. I can see great things for you and that wand, Miss Lockwood.’

I looked up at Darren who looked so incredibly proud. Ollivander disappeared behind the shelves and we soon left the shop with my new wand in hand. 

When we got home, my parents still hadn’t returned from work and Darren began telling me about what I’d learn in first year and all the different professors there were.

‘I mean Snape isn’t all bad,’ he said as we sat eating chocolate frogs in the back garden. ‘he’s just a bit thorough, not much of a personality, but as long as you do as he says and don’t talk back you’ll be fine… we’ve got a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher this year though, Professor Horne left to go study banshees in South America. Dumbledore didn’t say who’d be replacing him, though I heard Snape was looking to apply for the position. Hope he doesn’t get it to be honest.’

Mum and dad eventually came home and gave us a telling off for spoiling our appetite, but we just laughed and sat down to tell them about our day and show them my new wand. Dad seemed particularly interested in it.

‘Well, well, let me see.’ He said, slipping his glasses on and settling down at the kitchen table. His worn blue eyes scanned over the wand and I sat watching him. ‘What was the core?’

‘Phoenix feather.’ I said excitedly. ‘Elder, ten inches with a phoenix feather core.’

‘It certainly feels like a worthy wand for my daughter.’ He smiled at me over his thick black framed glasses. ‘Darling… Adrianna, come and see.’ He called my mother who was getting changed from a hard day battling with a nest of Boggarts. I laughed a little as my father was the only one who called her by her full name, everyone else just called her Anna, a trait I had inherited from her.

‘I’m sorry I rushed away, I had to change sweetheart.’ She said kissing the top of my head as she came down the stairs to see my wand. ‘What are we looking at?’

‘Angelina Lockwood’s new wand.’ My father said, proudly, I rolled my eyes at him, preferring to be called Angie. My father handed it to her and her eyes lit up.

‘Elder? I don’t think anyone on my side has had Elder before? George?’

‘Not on my side either.’ My father shook his head, still smiling.

‘Ten inches, I’m sure you’ll grow into the size.’ She said and slid her elegant hands over the whole slender frame. I looked up in admiration that both my parents knew so much about wands and what it meant to have a certain type. My mother brushed her dark blonde hair out of her face and her shining blue eyes stared down at me, smiling as she handed it back. ‘You’ll do great things with that wand.’ She said kissing my head again and I smiled up at my family, feeling that warm buzz drift up my arm again.

 

Just before the new school year began, Darren and I were playing on his broomstick in the back garden; he was an excellent flyer and even let me handle the broom on my own as long as I just flew around at a low level and made sure mum and dad didn’t notice. He was on the Quidditch team at Hogwarts as a Chaser and I’d heard he was well on his way to racking up a record number of points for an individual Gryffindor in Hogwarts history. My brother was the world to me, he just seemed to find everything easy and succeeded at whatever he wanted to succeed at.

My father called us both in for dinner and Darren brought us lower to the ground where I jumped off the broom and ran into the house. Darren followed putting his broom next to our school trunks that were packed and ready for us to leave the next day. Dinner smelled amazing. My parents had made my favourite roast chicken with mashed potatoes and carrots, they had made my brother his favourite meal before he left for his first day at Hogwarts as well.

We chatted excitedly about what the next year had in store for me and I was beyond excited to be on my way to the castle I’d heard so much about. I knew I wasn’t going to sleep that night thinking about my new adventure, but I didn’t care. 

Once dinner was over, I helped my mother clean up the kitchen, telling her what spells she should use to wash the dishes and tidy away the dry cutlery; my father asked me to come into the cosy living area so that we could have some family time. Little was I expecting a rather small Barn owl to be sitting on my brother’s arm; my jaw dropped and I stepped tentatively towards it, hoping I wouldn’t scare him away.

‘You got a new owl?!’ I exclaimed, gently stroking the owl’s head which he seemed to enjoy. My brother and father just sniggered slightly. ‘What?’

‘I didn’t get a new owl, you did.’ Darren said still smiling down at me.

‘What do you mean? I thought I was taking Percy?’ I spun around to see both my parents smiling at me. Percy was our rather stupid Tabby cat, who had a tendency to eat anything that wasn’t in his food bowl.

‘Darren wanted to get you a present for your first year.’ My mother said, wrapping her shall around her shoulders. ‘He was determined to get you an owl.’ She chuckled.

‘I’ve been saving all summer for him.’ Darren said behind me. ‘Mum and dad said if I took you to Diagon Alley to get your school supplies and help out around the house then they’d help me get the best owl I could find. He’s only young, but he’s got lots of energy and he’s fairly smart. I bet you could train him to be the smartest owl at Hogwarts though.’ I couldn’t help myself, I hugged my brother tight as the young owl climbed onto my shoulder and nuzzled against me. ‘Welcome to Hogwarts.’ Darren whispered in my ear.

I pulled away and laughed, watching as the owl began exploring my arm and looking around the room. My father brought out a small book and a travel cage. ‘Your mother and I decided you’d probably need something to store him in and we got you a guide on how to look after him while you’re away.’ My father sat the cage down on the coffee table and the owl happily hopped onto the top of it, looking very proud of himself.

‘Thank you.’ I breathed. It wasn’t aimed at any one person; they all knew I was grateful to them for what they had done for me.

‘What are you going to name him?’ My mother asked and picked up Percy, letting him curl up in her arms. I looked at Darren and frowned.

‘What should I call him?’ I asked my brother who just laughed.

‘I don’t know, anything you like.’ He chuckled, flicking through the care guide. I thought hard on what name suited such an excitable creature and came up with only one that I thought had a nice ring.

‘What about ‘Ruben’?’ I asked the room. 

My father raked his hands through his grey flecked brown hair and observed the owl and myself. ‘Ruben and Angie… I like the sound of it. Adrianna?’

‘Sounds like the beginning of an adventure.’ She nodded. We all sat up for a couple of hours longer and Ruben and I got to know each other a bit. I read through the guide and it told me that young barn owls soon grow into large barn owls so lots of sleep and plenty of food was a necessity. We eventually went to bed and I made sure he had a bowl of food in the bottom of his cage to keep him occupied while I tried to get some sleep.


	2. The Feast

We had left early that morning to make it to the station, my father pushed my trolley while I carried Ruben in his cage who was looking more and more sleepy the closer we got to leaving. ‘We’ll find him a good spot on the carriage so he can get some rest.’ My father assured me.

Finally, Darren and I were ready to board, the Hogwarts express didn’t leave for another thirty minutes, but Darren had wanted to catch up with his friends who were all excited to meet me.

‘My sister, Angie Lockwood.’ He said, proudly showing me off to everyone, they all said their ‘hellos’ and asked if I was nervous, before slipping into their own conversations.

‘I’m going to say bye to mum and dad again.’ I told Darren who nodded and pointed to where they had moved to. I quickly darted over to them and gave my mother a tight hug. ‘I’m going to miss you.’ I told them.

‘Write to us when you get there, let us know how your first few days are going.’ I could hear the small cracking of her voice as she tried to keep it together for my sake. ‘We’ll write back the second we hear from you.’ She promised. She let go and my father took over, holding me tight.

‘Good luck Angie and remember that this is just the first of many adventures.’ He wrapped his arms just a little tighter around me and let go, getting one last look at his daughter. I noticed a small family out of the corner of my eye, looking a little lost. It looked like a first year on his way to Hogwarts as well. ‘They look like they might need a little help Angie.’ He said and I nodded. We went over to them and the three of them looked grateful for the assistance. ‘First year as well?’ My father asked with his own winning smile, shaking the hand of the other father.

‘Yes, I’m afraid we’re a little lost.’ He said weakly. ‘We’ve never really done this before.’

‘Oh, I see. You’re muggles?’ My mother gave him a quick nudge. ‘Erm, non-magic folk, I mean.’ Nice cover dad, I rolled my eyes and the first year boy just giggled with me. ‘Well, here, let us help get you on the train. It’s our Angie’s first year as well.’

‘That would be wonderful.’ The mother said. ‘Thank you so much.’ Once again we made the trip to the luggage carriage and I began talking to the other first year.

‘I’m Angie, Angie Lockwood.’ I held out my hand for him to shake.

‘David Wales.’ He said shyly, shaking my hand. ‘I’m really nervous.’ He admitted.

‘My dad says if you get nervous, it means you appreciate how important the moment is.’ I tried to cheer him up, but I didn’t fully understand what it was I was saying myself. David frowned at me, he had big brown eyes and spikey black hair. ‘I don’t get it either.’ I said and we laughed for a while.

‘Right Angie, time to go.’ Darren said, bounding up to us. ‘Making friends already?’ He laughed.

‘This is David, he’s a first year too.’ I introduced my new friend.

‘Pleasure to meet you David.’ Darren held out his hand. ‘I’m Darren, Angie’s brother. We best get you two on the train and in a carriage before they’re all taken.’

We soon said our final goodbyes and Darren found us a carriage to settle into, before going to find his friends. David and I talked about what we had done with our summers and he was intrigued with the idea that Darren and I could just fly around on a broom in the middle of the back garden.

‘First years aren’t allowed brooms, but Darren says we get flying lessons instead. And it’s pretty easy once you’ve learnt how to hover for a while, I don’t expect you’ll find it too difficult.’ I assured him. At some point a couple of other lost looking first years had asked if they could join us and soon the compartment had around six of us all crammed inside. We talked excitedly about what we’d all heard about Hogwarts, each story getting a little more farfetched as they went on. 

I made good friends with a girl called Jocelyne McDermott, she was fairly pretty and seemed like she was always interested in what was being said. It looked like first year was going to be a good year after all.

The train eventually came to a stop and we’d all changed into our school robes, I hated wearing a skirt, but Darren told me it was mandatory and that was just the way it was. We stepped off the train and Darren waved at me through the crowd, he quickly darted over and the other first years that were with me just stared up in awe. He looked good in his uniform, even if his tie was loose and his shirt was untucked. Jocelyne stood closer behind me to get a look at him.

‘More friends?’ He asked, laughing. I shrugged and smiled. ‘Right, come on. I’ll take you all over to Hagrid,’ He put his hand on my shoulder and guided us in the opposite direction to everyone else towards a huge man shouting for first years. ‘First years take the boats over the Black Lake to get to the castle. You’ll meet up with McGonagall who takes you into the Great Hall for the Sorting ceremony. Don’t be nervous about any of it, as soon as you’re sorted you get to eat as much food as you like and that’s when you’ll find out where your common room is and things like that.’ He explained and brought us to the front of the crowd in front of Hagrid who looked more than pleased to see Darren.

‘Ello Darren!’ He said merrily in a booming voice.

‘Hello Hagrid, it’s good to see you again.’ He hugged the giant man and stood back.

‘This your sister I take it.’ The giant gestured towards me. 

‘Angie Lockwood and it seems she’s made friends with half the first years.’ Darren chuckled, I rolled my eyes and playfully hit his arm. ‘I’ve got to go, but Hagrid will take of you from here. Good luck.’ Darren gave me a quick hug and ran off towards the other side of the platform, leaving us with the giant man standing in front of us.

‘That was your brother?!’ Jocelyne said, her face a little pink. I nodded and laughed, knowing that she had immediately taken a liking to him.

Darren had been right, the view from the boats was staggeringly beautiful, the castle was all lit up and it looked even more magical than anyone expected. I shared a boat with Jocelyne, David and a couple of other first years, Benji Meyers, a ginger, shy boy and Jack Rathborne, a blonde and confident boy. There was an air of whispers among the boats at the beauty of the castle and I suddenly felt a nervousness in the pit of my stomach, I really was about to embark on the greatest adventure I could ever imagine at that age. I looked down quite by chance and saw all kinds of creatures swimming around in the water, I couldn’t help it and found myself naming all the creatures I could see. It calmed my nerves somewhat and I soon began naming different magical creatures I could think of when I finished with the ones below the water.

McGonagall looked strict and not like someone I’d want to cross, but I remembered Darren telling me she was the head of Gryffindor House and that generally she wasn’t that bad, you just had to stay out of trouble. The Great Hall was vaster than I could have imagined. Four long tables sat with each house filled with students chatting and catching up on what they had done over the summer. I could see the messy hair of Darren sitting in the middle of the table and all his friends giving me a quick wink or a friendly smile. Of course, Darren’s was the biggest and brightest and I found it put a calmness in my stomach similar to when I had been naming the creatures in the Black Lake.

We stood at the front of the hall and a dirty old hat sat on a stool staring back at us. Our names were being read out and I barely noticed when it got close to my name, feeling more and more nervous for where I would be placed. 

‘Angelina Lockwood.’ McGonagall called and looked straight at me. I swallowed and it took Jocelyne giving me a slight push to actually move towards the stool. The hat looked less than impressed. I sat down and briefly stared out at the entire school, catching the eye of the Gryffindor table and feeling that same sense of calm.

‘Hmm,’ the hat vibrated around my head. ‘Difficult. Brilliant mind, staggeringly intelligent I see, oh yes, so much intelligence and potential. Brave as well, not afraid to fail, though not much experience in that area I see. Creative and a power that is unprecedented, a kind heart to match and… Something else… but where to put you.’ The hat seemed to go silent for a long time and I looked at Darren who had a curious frown on his face. I just wanted him to be proud, I wanted my parents to be proud. I began naming the creatures in the Black Lake and thinking back to when Jocelyne had been pink in the face at the sight of my brother, I hoped that we would be friends no matter which houses we were placed into, she seemed like a lot of fun. ‘There!’ The hat finally shouted, frightening, myself and the rest of the school. ‘There it is!... GRYFFINDOR!!’ I felt a huge sense of relief as McGonagall took the hat off my head and I bounded over to the table where my brother and his friends had stood to clap and cheer for me. I gave Jocelyne and David quick hugs of encouragement. 

‘Good luck.’ I whispered to the both of them and took my seat next to the other first years that had already been sorted. I gave a look to Darren who could not have looked any prouder. The rest of the ceremony went on and I felt extraordinarily lucky that Jack, Benji, David and Jocelyne were sorted into Gryffindor as well. Once it was over Dumbledore took to the golden podium to make what Darren told me were the usual start of terms announcements. He also introduced the new DADA teacher.

‘Please join me in welcoming Professor Lupin!’ The Hall applauded politely at the slightly shabby and very young looking professor, I glanced at Darren who was giving a look of interest, but nothing more. Eventually the feast began and we were all stuffed beyond bursting before being taken up to Gryffindor Tower by the prefects, they showed us the route to the tower and I knew without even getting out of the Hall that I would get lost on a regular basis. Darren and the other fourth years were all sitting by the fire joking around and laughing at some story or another. 

Finally, I was there, I was at Hogwarts, the place Darren had filled my dreams with and fuelled my curiosity for. The first years were left to their own devices, Jocelyne and I were in the same dormitory with three other first year girls who all seemed friendly enough. All our trunks had been brought up already and Ruben had presumably been taken to the owlery to be fed and looked after up there. There was a sudden knock at the door just as we had started to get to know each other, Rosa, one of the other girls answered it and a fourth year stood with a smile on her face.

‘Sorry, is Angie here? Her brother is asking for her?’ She said, Rosa looked over to me and I jumped up, Jocelyne hot on my heels as we went down to the Common Room to see Darren. He was standing with a tall fourth year boy who was very animated in telling a story.

‘Angie!’ He exclaimed on seeing me and rushed over to sweep me up in a death hug. ‘I’m so proud of you! Thanks Katie.’ He said to the girl who had come up to get me.

‘No problem.’ She chuckled, shaking her head and going to sit down with the rest of the group.

Darren eventually put me down and gave Jocelyne and quick hug as well, congratulating her on making Gryffindor. He gestured over to a free table for us to sit and chat and Jocelyne looked a bit pink again, something I doubt went unnoticed by Darren, but he never said anything. ‘Make sure you write to mum and dad and send the owl tomorrow, they’ll never forgive me if I don’t at least say it.’ He laughed. ‘So, what do you both think?’ He smiled excitedly at both myself and Jocelyne.

‘It’s amazing.’ I said, still a little overwhelmed by the day I’d had. I looked around the cosy, warm Common Room and noticed how like home it felt, while Jocelyne went off talking about how happy her family would be that she wasn’t in Slytherin. I tuned into the conversation every now and again, but I was getting tired and sleep was beckoning me.

‘I have to admit Angie, I was worried.’ Darren caught my attention. ‘The hat sometimes takes a little while to figure out where to place someone if there’s something a bit different about them, but it seemed to really struggle with you. I’m just glad it was Gryffindor, that makes it four for four.’ He chuckled and Jocelyne gave a slightly louder laugh. ‘Anyway, you both best be off to bed. Big day for you tomorrow, you’ve got your timetables right?’ I nodded a little sleepily and Darren walked us as far as he could go up the stairs towards the girl’s dormitory. ‘Good night and congratulations again to the both of you. Don’t forget to write.’ He added and I promised I would write the letter first thing in the morning when my head was a bit clearer.


	3. The Morning After

The first few weeks were spent mostly just finding our way around the castle, Darren and Katie Bell, the girl who had come to our door the first night, gave us the odd tip on how to remember the different routes, but it was still a struggle.

I found that most of my classes were introductory and nothing like I thought they would be. I was ready to jump into action, having read all of the text books, I ended up getting all of my homework done within an hour of receiving it. Something everyone noticed and asked to see so that they could work out what it was they were supposed to be writing about.

‘I don’t know how you do it!’ Benji threw his quill down after trying to finish his Herbology essay. ‘How do you finish so quickly?!’ Benji, we soon found, had a fairly short temper when it came to homework and often threw his books down and gave up for an hour before attempting to do it again.

I shrugged and laughed, watching the people come in and out of the common room, wondering what it was I could do to fill my time. 

I decided to write another letter to my parents and tell them how well I was doing. I had been doing very well in just about every subject, getting the top grade in each class and finding myself bored and without enough work to do. I had also begun exploring the castle, just so that I could spend time doing something other than sitting, waiting for everyone else to finish their work. I often went to the Black Lake in the early morning to clear my head for the day and at the end of September saw Professor Lupin staggering out of the Forbidden Forest, he didn’t seem to notice me sitting on a rock twenty feet away. He looked like he’d been in some kind of fight and he struggled to stand or even walk. I put my book on Ancient Runes back in my bag and swung it over my shoulder, rushing to help him get back to the castle.

‘Professor.’ I said, he was breathing very heavily and had blood all over his hands and on his thin shirt. He couldn’t even talk he was so worn down. ‘We need to get you to the castle.’ I supported whatever weight I could, but Lupin was very tall and his limbs were long and difficult to hold onto. ‘It’s not much further professor, we’re nearly there.’ I said encouraging him to stand up. I noticed that his eyes were harsh and he looked a little wild, I could have sworn he had blue eyes, but the ones that stared up at me, pleading for help were bloodshot and emerald, his pupils were huge and I knew he needed help immediately.

I managed to get him to the edge of a corridor leading into the castle, but the hospital wing was too far for my eleven-year-old self to carry him. He seemed weaker than before as well, like sleep was calling him. I set him down on the stone steps and panted heavily. ‘Professor, I’m going to get help. Just stay here okay.’ I was sure he growled in response, but I was already sprinting down the corridors, looking for another teacher before I could hear what he was saying. I found Hagrid and Professor Sprout talking about something unimportant on my way to the hospital wing. 

‘Angie?’ Hagrid frowned. ‘What you doin up this early?’ he chuckled.

I stopped and tried hard to get my breath back. ‘It’s Professor Lupin… think he’s been in a fight… there’s blood on his shirt… I couldn’t carry him anymore.’ I panted. Hagrid moved quicker than I’d ever seen him or Sprout move. They were back to where I’d left Lupin in a flash, he was still weak and sleeping by the looks of things. I leaned against the stone wall, feeling thoroughly done when Hagrid, without hesitation, picked up the sleeping Lupin and took him straight to the hospital wing.

‘You’d best come and see if Madame Pomfrey has anything for you as well.’ Sprout said, she seemed very panicked and I hoped she didn’t think Lupin had died. It didn’t look fatal when he was staggering out of the Forest. She took my arm and we went into the Hospital Wing where Madame Pomfrey was attending to Lupin as soon as he was laid down. Sprout found a recovery potion and handed it to me. ‘Here we go, drink up.’ She said, but it looked as if she could have done with one as well. ‘Are you alright?’

I nodded. ‘Is he okay? There was a lot of blood on his shirt.’ I asked, trying to get a look at what was going on with Lupin.

‘He will be fine; he just needs to rest.’ She said. Hagrid rushed out of the Hospital Wing and up towards the main part of the castle. ‘What did you see?’ I gave her a small frown.

‘I was just reading by the Lake and Professor Lupin came out of the Forest, he looked tired. He fell down and I ran over to him, when I saw the blood I tried to help him up to the castle. But he lost consciousness, so I left him by the steps and ran into you and Hagrid.’ I tried to explain as fully as I could. She seemed to deflate somewhat and I wondered what it was she was relieved about.

‘I think it’s best you don’t mention what you saw to anyone.’ She said, much more quietly. ‘Professor Lupin… he sometimes goes into the Forest to research the creatures that live there. I expect this was just a small incident that caught him off guard.’ She nodded, reassuringly.

‘I hope he’s okay.’ I said and finished my potion.

‘I’ll tell him you said so.’ Sprout smiled and sent me on my way, making me promise not to tell anyone what happened as they didn’t want the whole school thinking there was something out there that even Lupin couldn’t handle, it would just spread panic. 

I nodded and kept my word, I didn’t tell a soul and for a while I barely thought on it. Lupin certainly never mentioned it to me in private, not even to thank me for getting him to the castle. I didn’t care exactly, not until I woke early one morning a month later and saw him staggering from the forest again, this time though there were a few other teachers around him that were there to help him back to the castle. I thought it strange and decided to ask him if it was the same creature that attacked him last time.

DADA was the last class I had a couple of days after and I waited behind at the end of the class, I wasn’t exactly sure of what we had been learning about as I had been reading a different book entirely. Luckily I sat just out of view of Lupin’s desk so he wouldn’t notice that I wasn’t following along with the class. 

‘I’ll catch up.’ I said to Jocelyne who gave me an odd look when I remained in my seat. I sat and thought hard on what I had seen both times.

‘Something bothering you Angelina?’ Lupin said as he began clearing away some of the rubbish left behind by students.

‘It’s Angie sir.’ I corrected him and he gave a small smile. ‘I actually wanted to ask you some questions.’

Lupin sighed and slumped down onto the bench in front of my desk. He had very young features, but he had the air of an older man about him, if I had to guess, I would have said he was around mid-twenties, but his voice and demeanour didn’t match that theory. He had three silvery scars across his face that he barely seemed to be affected by and I wondered what could have done that to him. ‘Maybe just one or two.’ He said and I tried to pick just two questions to ask him.

‘I saw you the other day,’ I started, ‘coming out of the forest again, you looked like you’d been attacked again and I was wondering if it was the same thing that attacked you last time?’

He gave another small, tight smile. ‘It was a similar incident yes.’ He leaned back and I noticed that his robes clung onto a very skinny frame underneath them, he looked very ill. ‘One more question.’ He raised his finger to indicate just one.

I couldn’t choose what to ask and he could clearly see that I had too many thoughts floating around in my head to concentrate on just one more question; I thought for a moment he was going to sympathise with me and tell me I could ask as many questions as I could think of, but that wasn’t what came out. ‘I’m sorry.’ He said, I gave him a small frown. ‘If I frightened you at all that morning, I was… I wasn’t quite all there.’ I suddenly noticed that indeed his eyes were blue, but that wasn’t what I saw that morning a month previous, they were definitely green, they were harsh and almost animalistic, but now they just seemed concerned and a little curious.

‘I wasn’t frightened… I was confused.’ I admitted and decided that was quite enough talk about how I felt. ‘I have to go; my friends will be wondering where I am.’ I gathered my bag and stood up to leave.

‘Are you bored?’ Lupin suddenly asked. I turned around to see him, struggling to stand up again. ‘I notice that even though you barely seem to listen in my classes, instead reading books that I’m not even sure third years are capable of understanding, you seem to pass every test and write every essay as if you’ve been doing this for years. I just wonder if you’re not being challenged enough?’

I bit my lip to stop myself from smiling, of course he noticed, he’s a teacher, they notice everything. ‘I read all the books before I came here. I’ve always been quite good at picking up on things.’ A flash of panic appeared on Lupin’s face before it settled into something a little more neutral.

‘Maybe, we need to look at something a little more advanced for you.’ He mused. ‘I’ll talk to Professor McGonagall and see if we can sort something out that might give you a bit more of a challenge.’ He nodded, making his decision and giving me permission to leave the classroom. I could feel his eyes on the back of my neck as I left the room.

The Quidditch season had started and Darren had told us where to sit to get the best view of the pitch while we played Hufflepuff. I admired my brother, cheering loudly with my friends and watching him dart through all the players to score more and more goals. The game finished around an hour later and Gryffindor had won by eighty points, we all celebrated in the common room and I thought no more on my studies, instead relishing in my brother’s success.


	4. Bored

Lupin had paced around his office, feeling the effects of the moon beginning to wear off, but instead being replaced by a sense of worry over the conversation he’d had with Angelina Lockwood. Her brother was a very perceptive individual and very well liked among his classmates and teachers, even if he did end up in the odd detention here and there. For the most part though, Lupin didn’t think for a single second that Darren had come close to working out that he was a werewolf. Angelina though, she was a different story altogether. She hadn’t said it, but Lupin was fairly certain she had seen him in his wolf form, at the very least she must’ve heard him.

When Sprout had told him about her finding him that morning at the end of September, fear and panic spread through him like a bad rash. ‘What if it’d been worse?’ He snapped at McGonagall as she visited him in the hospital wing. ‘I should never have come; the entire school will know by the end of the day.’

‘I wouldn’t be so sure Remus.’ Sprout said, curiously. ‘While Angie is an extraordinary individual, I don’t think she is capable of breaking a promise, even if it is to a teacher. She’s like her brother in that sense… no, I think we should just wait and see what happens next.’ Sprout announced and Lupin had just laughed, not quite believing what he was hearing.

‘I’m inclined to agree with you, Pomona.’ McGonagall nodded and Remus again laughed. ‘While she possesses an extraordinary amount of talent in her academic studies, her social skills are not the sharpest. I don’t believe she will tell anyone Remus, but you should be ready for her to question you about what she saw.’

‘And what exactly am I supposed to tell an eleven-year girl?’ Lupin mocked them both.

‘Whatever you think is best.’ Dumbledore cut in, striding up the hospital wing. ‘You saw it for yourself Remus, the hat couldn’t place her. It took a huge amount of effort to see into her mind and what it saw I won’t dare ask, but I do not believe it was anything dark or malicious. I don’t think it’s beyond the realms of possibility that she will ask you point blank, but what you tell her will affect the way she sees the world.’ Lupin thought on what he was saying. ‘We forget sometimes, how fragile a child’s mind is. They do not see monsters the same way we do, they see adventure and curiosity. Angelina Lockwood may just see a man and nothing more, she is more than capable of distinguishing a man from a monster Remus. But I will not encourage you tell her anything if you do not think it wise.’

Lupin thought on that morning for the longest time and decided that if she asked the exact question then he would answer as honestly as he could, but warn her about the prejudice against people like him, that he is not seen as a good person and quite possibly he wasn’t a good man at all. But she had yet to ask it. Maybe she wasn’t as smart as people kept saying, at least that’s what Lupin convinced himself of until she sat in front of him at the end of class and he watched a million separate thoughts float through her mind, none of them looked like anything that struck fear into her though. She was just… curious.

Lupin made the visit to McGonagall that evening, still feeling a little worn out, but able to function properly. ‘How are you feeling Remus?’ She said, marking a few papers.

‘Fine, just tired.’ Lupin sat down and tried to catch his breath back. ‘I just came to talk to you about Angelina Lockwood.’ McGonagall peered at him, over the rim of her glasses. ‘She didn’t ask me the question in so many words. In no words at all actually. She just asked if I was attacked by the same creature as last time.’ Lupin gave a small chuckle. ‘I told her it was a similar incident… but it’s not really why I came to talk to you. I don’t know if it's just my class or if it’s the same in yours, but she seems a little…’

‘She’s bored.’ McGonagall finished the sentence for him and sat up in her chair. ‘I’ve noticed. The last essay I had them write was only supposed to be a brief history one of the figures we’re studying, she wrote a detailed timeline of his life with her own thoughts on where some of his ideas came from and what those ideas influenced in modern society.’

‘Impressive.’ Lupin nodded.

‘She wrote it in class, Remus.’ Lupin looked up at her and suddenly realised why she looked a little annoyed. ‘I watched her do it, her book was closed the entire time and when I questioned her on what we had just been talking about, she gave a fairly detailed answer. Of course she’s bored, we’re not giving her any kind of challenge to keep her interested.’

‘She’ll start acting up soon.’ Lupin thought curiously. 

‘She already has. Darren Lockwood, her brother, he was smart as they come and much the same in first year. He got better after that, finding Quidditch to occupy himself with. Angie, will likely go the same route.’ McGonagall leaned over her work again. ‘We’ll probably take the same course of action as we did with him. Where we give the class ten questions to answer, give her fifteen… maybe throw in the odd additional essay here and there.’ McGonagall gave a small smile.

Lupin just chuckled and nodded. He began to stand again to leave her in peace.

‘Have you heard about advancements Damocles has made?’ McGonagall called as he began walking out. Lupin turned back with a small, hopeful smile on his face. ‘A cure can’t be far away.’ She smiled at him as he began to laugh a little and wander back to his office.


	5. It Makes Sense

I’d gone down for breakfast early one morning a few weeks later, with every intention of writing to my parents again. I’d written the week before, but finally I’d had a few challenges to contend with in each class and I was finally understanding what Darren had been talking about all those years. I looked up at the front of the hall and saw very few teachers were even up yet. Probably still getting ready for the day ahead, I quickly finished my letter and my breakfast, just as Jocelyne and Jack arrived talking to each other about the upcoming Quidditch game. 

I stayed for just a little while before needing to leave to make it to the owlery before my first class of the day which was Charms. It had gotten colder and even snowed a little as December rolled in, Lupin had been ill the week before and missed one of our classes and everyone was asking if he was okay, when I suddenly realised that it was every month he was ill. In the few days before he took time off, he’d look tired and worn out and his skin would be paler than normal. When he came back there was always some injury that he’d claim he got that morning during a class, there was always something and it was always around that time of the month. Something flared up in the back of my mind, but I couldn’t quite place it properly, I suddenly remembered the look he had the first month I saw him and again that same thought flared in the back of my mind, I’d read something somewhere that talked about those symptoms.

I tried to clear my mind and remember it, but it was no good, I kept coming up blank. I got myself up to the owlery and found Ruben who was nearly twice the size he was when we left for Hogwarts a few months earlier. He flew down to see me and I quickly tied the letter to his leg. I gave him a treat before letting him go to deliver my letter home. For a moment I watched him disappear into the clouds, before remembering I needed to get to my first class and I was already running late.

I rushed out of the owlery, only to slip on a particularly icy step and fall hard down the spiral stairs. I hit the back of my head and neck hard and heard the bone snap in my arm, I heard someone running towards me and felt something hot trickle down my neck and shoulder.

‘Angelina!’ It was Lupin, I could just about see him bending down to see if I was okay, but I felt dizzy and wailed with the increasing pain in my arm. ‘It’s alright, it’s okay, just sit up and let me see you.’ I finally managed to calm down enough to sit up and watch his concerned eyes dart around my face. He brought both his warm hands up to my face and look at my eyes. ‘Looks like a concussion… and of course a broken arm.’ He said and I tried hard to concentrate on his blue eyes. ‘Let’s get you up and to the hospital wing, can you stand?’ I nodded, feeling like such a child for crying over a broken arm. Lupin only went as fast as I felt comfortable with. ‘Now I’m no good and medicinal spells so you’ll have to just try and stay awake while we get you to Madame Pomfrey. Can you do that?’ I nodded, but it hurt to do so.

I just let Lupin support my good arm all the way back down to the hospital wing, a couple of times I’d felt like I was going to throw up and we’d stopped for a moment so I could get my breath back, but eventually we got there. Madame Pomfrey was standing right in front of me, making a fuss and getting me into bed, she fixed up my arm no problem and the relief was all I needed to feel so much better.

‘Lean forward for me.’ Pomfrey instructed and I let my head drop so she could get a better look at the cut I had on the back of my head. ‘Nothing too major, I’ll give you something for the concussion and fix up this cut and you’ll be alright to head back to class.’ She stood back to grab me a potion when I noticed that Lupin was gone. ‘He’s gone to get your brother, just in case it was more serious than we first thought. You should be fine though.’ Pomfrey nodded and I sighed in relief, thinking I’d imagined the whole thing.

I drank the thin green liquid and let her deal with my cut when Lupin and Darren came rushing through the hospital wing doors. Darren ran straight over to me.

‘Are you alright?’ He demanded.

‘She’s fine Lockwood.’ Pomfrey said in her commanding tone. ‘Just a broken arm and a concussion, but we’ve fixed both of those.’

Darren looked very worried and very out of breath, as did Lupin. ‘Professor Lupin said you fell down the owlery stairs, it’s icy at the top, I thought you would’ve noticed that much on your way up.’ Darren was giving me a lot of information all at once and it was a little mind numbing. ‘I’m glad you’re okay though.’ He gave me his winning smile and I chuckled back at him. ‘Thank you Professor.’

Lupin had been getting his breath back and just nodded to Darren with his own tight smile.

‘You’d best sit down Remus, I’ll get you a recovery potion.’ Pomfrey said, leaving my cut for just a moment. ‘You shouldn’t be exerting yourself too much at-‘ she suddenly stopped mid-sentence and I mentally completed it with “at this time of the month” that’s when it suddenly hit me. ‘At your age.’ She completed and they both laughed a little.

‘Hey.’ Darren said, holding my hand. ‘You good?’ His crisp eyes scanning mine.

‘Yeah, fine. Just a bit dazed I guess.’ I said, trying to reassure him. 

‘Right, well, if Madame Pomfrey says you’re alright then I guess I’ll have to get back to class. I’ll catch up with you at lunch.’ Darren smiled and squeezed my hand gently. He left the hospital wing, nodding to Lupin on his way out.

I watched Lupin for a moment, suddenly feeling a little sorry for him. The only explanation for everything I’d seen with him, was that he was a werewolf; I didn’t want to ask, in case he was particularly sensitive about it, but I did worry that what I had seen that morning in September was the morning after a transformation. I made a mental note not to go out during the early morning after a full moon anymore, just in case.

Lupin watched me thinking and seemed to sense that I was thinking very hard about something. He leaned forward about to say something when Madame Pomfrey came back and handed him a recovery potion before she continued working on my cut. 

When I was done, Lupin offered to walk me to my next class and I agreed that I might’ve needed a hand in case I felt sick again. We arrived at Transfiguration, it had already started, but McGonagall saw that Lupin was with me and nodded, understanding that I had been late for a reason.

I spent the weeks leading up to Christmas reading up on werewolves and trying to work out if there was any known cure. It seemed someone called Damocles had made significant progress towards alleviating some of the symptoms, but vowed no cure existed due to the branch of magic it involved. I felt immensely sorry for Lupin and wondered if there was anything I could do for him.

Darren and I went home for Christmas and we had a great time with our extended family who all asked about my first term at Hogwarts. I was the youngest of the family and everyone else spent the time asking me if I’d discovered one part of the castle or another and let me know how they worked it out with their friends. I’d sent letters to my group of friends, all of whom had either already written back or replied to my own owl explaining that they’d been so busy with family stuff that they’d almost forgotten to send an owl entirely. I didn’t mind too much as I’d been so caught up in my own family affairs and the newly discovered secret that I still hadn’t told anyone.

‘You must be cold.’ My father said, bringing me a hot chocolate and another blanket, he had his dark red scarf and long, grey coat on. I’d been sitting staring up at the full moon a couple of nights before we were due back to Hogwarts. I smiled up at him and held the steaming mug close to my chest. ‘What’s on your mind Angie?’ My father always had a good eye for when something was bothering someone, it was his job after all to make them feel like anything they said was okay.

I took a breath and worked out where to start. My father wrapped the blanket a little tighter around my body and just waited patiently for me to speak. ‘What do you know about werewolves?’ I asked, still staring up at the sky; he followed my eye line and chuckled.

‘Well… where to begin.’ He gave his glasses a quick clean and slipped them back onto his face. ‘Werewolves are classed as Dark Creatures, a little because they are technically half human and half wolf, but mostly so the ministry can treat them like any other dark creature they can’t control. A werewolf is someone who has been bitten by another werewolf and passed on the… I suppose it’s a type of infection, or virus of sorts. It’s a terrible thing to be a werewolf, extraordinary amount of pain and loneliness I imagine. I often feel sorry for anyone who comes to the ward with the condition, there’s nothing to be done for them. No cure, not yet anyway.’

‘I read something about someone called Damocles?’ I sipped the hot chocolate and felt it circle my body.

‘Yes, he’s invented a wolfsbane potion.’ My father explained. ‘Now wolfsbane is a type of flower that Damocles has discovered with the right combination of ingredients can subdue the wolf side and give the human side more control over the body during transformation.’

‘Similar to an animagus?’

'Well…’ My father bobbed his head from side to side. ‘Maybe, we’re still not quite sure what the effects are in the fullest form. Maybe one day we will, there’s still a long way to go in refining the potion, it’s entirely complex and a few of us have been asked to take classes in how to brew it due to the complexity of it. But I have hope.’ My father smiled down at me and I drank the rest of my hot chocolate. 

‘Do you think werewolves are bad people?’

‘No.’ He shook his head and put the mug down next to his feet so that he could put his arm around my shoulders. ‘Just misunderstood. The human part of a werewolf is still human after all and not every human is bad… I would however, warn you against wandering into any dark woods while the full moon is out. While I don’t condone negative views on anyone for simply being who they are, werewolves are very dangerous when the moon is out and they have no control over their actions. Even if it’s your best friend in the whole world, they will not recognise the bond you share. Do you understand?’ I nodded and looked up at my father. ‘You want to tell me why werewolves have suddenly caught your interest?’

I shook my head, before thinking about how much I hated lying to my family. ‘I think someone at school is a werewolf.’

My father sighed and nodded. ‘Well, have they told you this?’ I shook my head. ‘You just worked it out?’ I nodded. ‘In that case, I find that anyone who comes to St Mungo’s always does better when they know they are surrounded by friends who still love them. And it never hurts to give them the odd bar of chocolate.’ I laughed and wondered if Professor Lupin preferred life in the castle and if he had a group of friends to support him through his condition. ‘Come on. Your mother will think we’ve frozen to the bench.’ My father helped me down from the bench I’d parked myself on and I took one last look at the full moon, hoping the wolfsbane potion worked that night.

The rest of the school year had been fairly uneventful. I’d been in a few too many detentions, but always tried harder in Lupin’s classes, just so that I wasn’t causing him any unnecessary work. I’d passed all of my exams with flying colours and kept up to date on some of the advancements in the wolfsbane potion. It seemed that Damocles had stopped his werewolf research altogether, he’d won the Order of Merlin First Class and moved onto other things that he was apparently more interested in. 

My father had told me about him only inventing it to prove he could find a cure, but the problem was that the potion was left with all of its complexity and expensive ingredients, making it difficult for werewolves to actually make it or afford it. It seemed that Dumbledore had asked the potion be made for Lupin due to the increase in Aconite and Wormwood in Snape’s supply cupboard. I again didn’t say anything and continued to pass his class with ease. Snape seemed to be impressed with my work, because even he couldn’t find fault in any of my essays or my potion-making skills, to the point where towards the end of the school year, he simply gave my cauldron a quick glance and handed me my pass mark without asking any questions.

Darren and Katie had been impressed that I’d passed his class, given that neither one of them did in their first year. During the end of term feast, I noticed that Lupin looked a lot fresher and chatted happily to the rest of the teachers. I could feel someone watching me and scanned the rest of the teachers table. A pair of twinkling blue eyes found mine and the Headmaster simply smiled and raised his goblet just a little to me. I smiled back and drank from my own goblet, before continuing to listen to my friends talk about the summer ahead and what they were going to do with their time. I suddenly realised that I had no idea what I would be doing.

We finished and headed off to bed where I wondered about the year I’d had. Hogwarts hadn’t been anything like what I’d expected it to be, I didn’t feel like I’d learned very much or been challenged any. But I’d made friends with most of the people there, so in the long run it might not have been as much of a failure as I thought it might’ve been. I’d been given a letter by Hagrid just as I hopped onto the carriage of the train who told me it was important that I didn’t lose it before I got home.

When I’d opened it in the compartment, it said that someone would be making a visit to my home during the summer to talk to my parents about the progress I’d made that year. It put a fear in the pit of my stomach that I hadn’t done well enough that year or maybe more was expected from me. 

‘I doubt that’s it.’ Darren said, as we said our summer goodbyes to our friends and wandered back home with mum and dad. ‘You passed every exam and did every piece of extra work that was handed out and you still told me you were bored.’ Darren swung his broom over his shoulder as we walked out of King’s cross station.

‘I’m sure it’s all fine, sweetheart.’ My mother said, giving me a kiss on the top of my head.

 

As it turned out, it wasn’t anything bad at all. Dumbledore had arrived just after my parents bought me a broom to practice for Quidditch try outs. One of the Chasers had been a seventh year and left school which meant a spot had opened up. My parents had been hopeful that it would keep me occupied when I wasn’t doing assignments or essays, but Quidditch practice was only held a couple of times a week and I was certain I would still have a lot of spare time on my hands.

‘Well then, let’s talk about what you can use that time for.’ Dumbledore had said, he sat at my kitchen table with a cup of tea in his hands and waited for me to answer. ‘Let me help you out. I’ve spoken with Professor McGonagall who has informed me that you were in detention at least four times a month during the last term, she and a few of the other teachers, feel that you’ve not been challenged any during your regular classes. Possibly because you already know everything there is about the things we’re teaching you?’

I gave an awkward smile and looked at my father who seemed a little disappointed that I’d been in detention, but more concerned that I wasn’t learning enough.

‘I read all the books before I got there.’ I shrugged.

‘Well, why don’t we find you a project of some description? Something that you can focus on while you’re not studying.’ Dumbledore thought for a moment. ‘Professor Snape has said how capable you are in his potions classes, what about an extra hour a week with him learning some more advanced potions?’

I lifted my head at the prospect of learning more advanced branches of magic. 

‘Professor McGonagall has said you’ve shown an interest in turning living things into inanimate objects and vice versa. Maybe we can look at something to do with that?’ Dumbledore nodded and I smiled at him.

‘That sounds like something you could do.’ My father smiled at me.

‘Which brings us to Professor Lupin’s comments.’ My face dropped just a fraction, but I was sure only Dumbledore noticed. ‘It seems he is a great admirer of the work you’ve been doing in his class and it also seems you’ve only been in detention with him twice at the beginning of the school year. He has offered to teach you more advanced branches of magic that interests you, should you wish to learn from him.’

I smiled and nodded eagerly. ‘Yes sir.’

‘Excellent. I shall deliver the good news to the rest of the staff and I look forward to seeing you and your brother next year. Mrs Lockwood, it really is a lovely home you keep.’ Dumbledore smiled at my mother who had been standing at the kitchen counter behind me. ‘George.’ My father stood and shook Dumbledore’s hand.

‘I’ll show you out.’ My father said and Dumbledore put up no protest. I was certain I heard them talking more about me as they left the kitchen.


	6. Quidditch and a Boggart

My second year was much more enjoyable than the first, I enjoyed my extra classes and trying out for the Quidditch team gave me something to do every Saturday afternoon before I headed to Snape’s extra potions sessions. He was the same as he was in class, though he had asked me to prepare every potion I’d learned in first year without looking at the book.

‘If you want to pass yourself as somewhat capable, then you must think through each potion and find the next logical step.’ He kept telling me. I had to think about what I was doing, the property of each ingredient and then decide which step came next. I finally felt like I was being challenged, at one point I’d even tried to make some of the new potions without looking at the book, something he complemented me on when no one was around and gave Gryffindor one point.

I had yet to go and see Lupin for any extra classes as I felt like he might have been too tired to answer any questions I had; I’d read the limited books available and they all told me werewolves needed to rest whenever possible. It didn’t go unnoticed and the day the new Gryffindor Chaser was going to be announced in the common room he had asked me to stay behind to talk about my extra essay that I’d been asked to write.

‘I’ll try not to keep you too long.’ He said, knowing that today was the day of the announcement. ‘I just wanted to ask how much interest you have boggarts? You chose to write about them, but I get the impression you’ve never come across one before.’

I shook my head, trying to remember if I’d ever encountered a boggart before. The honest truth was that most of what I wrote about was what I had learned from books in the library and that was only on things like their hibernation patterns and where they like to hide. ‘I don’t think I have, no.’

‘Well, my third years will be practicing battling against a boggart in the classes I have with them in the coming weeks, if you’re interested I can show you as well?’ Lupin offered with a small smile.

I frowned a little. ‘I’m not sure. It’s just that I don’t know what it will turn into.’ 

‘You don’t know what you’re scared of?’ It was Lupin’s turn to offer a small frown. I shook my head and he chuckled to himself. ‘Well, if you fancied finding out, come and see me any time.’

I nodded and waited for him to say it was okay to leave. 

‘Go.’ He gestured the door. ‘Good Luck!’ He called as I raced up to Gryffindor Tower to find my name on a piece of paper stuck to the notice board.

Darren was the first to me and hugged me tight along with the rest of the Gryffindor team, followed by Jocelyne and anyone who was cheering me on. We celebrated late into the night and I woke up only a few hours before my first training session with the team. I grabbed my broom and my new training robes and Darren ran with me towards the pitch. I had to bring my school bag with me as my extra class with Snape was afterwards and I hoped he would let me keep my broom at the back of his classroom.

Overall it had gone well, I began learning drill patterns with Katie and Darren who had started slow as I was still getting used to flying so high over the pitch, but soon we moved onto a very slow version of what I would be attempting during the actual game. It was harder work than Darren had made it seem, but then I was beginning to find out just how good Darren really was.

By the time we were done, I could feel what Darren described as the athlete’s ache taking over my body. ‘You’ll get used to it and it’ll get better with time.’ He winked at me and I ran off to my extra potions class with Snape who was about to have me make a cauldron of recovery potion for the hospital wing.

‘You’ll need to make six times the amount that will fit into a standard cauldron.’ Snape gestured to the rather large cauldron that sat off to the side of his desk and handed me the book of Medicinal Potions for the Accomplished Wizard. ‘This is a very advanced potion and will determine whether this has been a colossal waste of time or if you show the kind of promise I can actually teach.’ Snape was watching over my shoulder the entire time, just in case a mistake was made, and to my own surprise as much as his, none was made. By the time I was finished it was late into the night and probably past curfew, but I was hungry and Snape obviously didn’t care. ‘Good.’ He said so quickly, I was unsure even said it at all. ‘That is all for tonight. You needn’t bother next week.’ He offered no more explanation on the subject and he nodded for me to leave, still inspecting the potion. 

I picked up my school bag and broom, throwing both over each shoulder and making my way up to Gryffindor Tower. It seemed like such a long way and I really couldn’t find the energy. I wandered past the DADA classroom and heard faint music coming from within. I wondered what Professor Lupin could have been doing up at this time. I opened the door cautiously to find him at his desk marking papers, his hand casually moving in circles above a tea cup. His eyes snapped up to where I was standing, still with my broom over my shoulder.

‘Angelina?’ He called to me, quickly checking the time. ‘Shouldn’t you be in the Tower by now? It’s past curfew.’

‘It’s Angie.’ I reminded him, though I knew it did no good. ‘I was with Professor Snape for one of my extra classes.’ I told him, feeling my legs shaking slightly. It seemed he recognised the tiredness in me.

‘Why don’t you come up for a cup of tea and you can tell me about it?’ Lupin offered and I weakly agreed, still dreading all the stairs I would have to take back up to the Tower. Lupin offered to carry my broom, something I was immensely grateful for.

We finally settled in his office and I felt so much better for sitting down in one of his comfy armchairs. Lupin went about making tea and handed one to me as he settled opposite me. ‘I didn’t see Professor Snape at dinner, can I presume he kept you as well?’ Lupin asked and I nodded, immediately he stood up and took a large bar of chocolate from his desk drawer, he broke off a row and gave it to me. ‘It’ll at least give you a pick me up.’ He chuckled at some unknown joke, before taking some himself. I took a bite and suddenly felt a rush of warmth spread through my body, remembering what my father had said about the things chocolate could help with. ‘That looks like a pleasant memory.’ Lupin brought me back from sitting on the bench in the back garden with my father.

‘It was.’ I said. ‘My father’s a Healer at St Mungo’s, he says chocolate helps with all sorts of things.’ I said thinking harder as I ate the last mouthful. ‘I think it’s something to do with the cocoa beans.’ I casually began stirring my tea by moving my finger in circles above the tea cup, similar to what Lupin had done when I first saw him. 

I could sense Lupin staring at me and stopped, sipping at the steaming liquid. 

‘What was Snape teaching you?’ He asked, clearly seeing he’d made me slightly uncomfortable with his staring. 

‘He had me make a supply of recovery potion for the hospital wing.’ I shrugged. ‘Wasn’t too bad, thought I’d messed up with the Mint though, I was convinced I’d put Lavender in instead, but Snape was watching and didn’t have a go at me, so I guess it was fine.’

‘Recovery potion?’ Lupin asked, a frown appearing on his face. I nodded. ‘You don’t normally learn that one until fifth year, have you been practising?’

I shook my head. ‘I just followed what it said in the book.’

A smile broke out on his face. ‘Well I have to say, I am very impressed. I’m not much a potion maker myself, but I’m very aware of how complicated they can be.’

‘I actually find them rather easy. The book tells you what to do.’ I suddenly looked up from my tea and smiled weakly, I didn’t mean it as a slight on Lupin’s intelligence, it just sort of came out. ‘Sorry.’

‘Don’t be.’ It was almost a whisper. ‘Don’t ever be sorry for how intelligent you are Angelina. One day the world will turn to someone like you for help and when that day comes, they will realise how special you really are.’ I smiled at Lupin, feeling like, for the first time, that I wasn’t wasting his time or making him use any more energy than he had to spare. ‘How did your first training session go?’

I nodded. ‘Harder than Darren makes it seem.’ I laughed. ‘He’s so good at flying, I wish I could be as good as him.’

‘He’s very talented.’ Lupin agreed.

‘I think he wants to make a career out of it.’ I remembered Darren saying that once. ‘I think he said he wants to go to Bulgaria and Japan and play in the best leagues in the world… I think he’ll make it.’

Lupin let me sit with my thoughts for a while, before I suddenly realised how dark the rest of the office was and that it was well past curfew. ‘Sorry, professor, it’s getting late and I don’t want Filch to catch me wandering around after hours.’ I put the tea cup down and Lupin chuckled in agreement.

‘Why don’t I walk you back to the Tower?’ He said standing up as well. ‘We can tell Filch you were in detention, I’m sure he’ll get a kick out of that.’ I laughed and nodded. Lupin again picked up my broom for me and we walked back to the Tower where my head hit the pillow and darkness took over. 

 

I’d had a lot of time over the next couple of weeks to work on my assignments and remembered what Lupin said about the Boggart when I overheard some third years talking about it in the Great Hall. It didn’t sound too bad and I wondered what it would have turned into if I stood in front of it. I told myself that if I finished all of my work I would go and see him. As it turned out, I’d finished everything within a couple of hours of returning the common room that night. Jocelyne and Benji had been struggling with their Astronomy essays and I decided to help them before going down to see Lupin.

‘Looking forward to the game on Saturday?’ Jack said, excitedly as he and David sat down at the table we had settled on.

I nodded and laughed. ‘Bit nervous.’ I admitted and grimaced.

‘You’ll be fine, everyone’s going to be cheering you on. None of the Ravenclaws or Hufflepuffs want Slytherin to win anyway.’ Jack assured me, opening up one of his books and started on an essay that I’d finished hours ago. ‘Any advice?’

‘Chapters eighteen, twenty-one and seventy-eight were the most useful to me.’ I laughed.

‘You’re the best.’ He winked and began jotting notes. I noticed that Benji and Jocelyne were giving each other strange smiles.

I just ignored them checking my watch. ‘I best get going, extra class with Lupin tonight.’ They all nodded and wished me luck as I ran upstairs to change into my jeans and red jumper before heading off to the DADA classroom. I ran into Darren on the way who was entertaining his friends in the courtyard with a paper lion that had wings and was breathing fire. I watched for a few moments, laughing with everyone. ‘Charmed?’ I asked Katie.

‘More like possessed.’ She said, still laughing at the things Darren was making it do. ‘It’s hard to explain, it’s like whatever Darren can imagine doing, the lion does. You learn about it in fifth year.’ She shrugged. I stayed a few moments longer before deciding the word ‘possessed’ was a little too heavy for me.

It stayed firmly planted in the back of my mind as I wandered through the corridors towards Lupin’s classroom. He had just dismissed a class of first years who all looked very excited about the lesson they’d just had. They were listing off creatures found in the Black Lake and my mind drifted back to when I’d been nervous and listed them in my head as I approached the castle for the first time. I entered quietly and he was cleaning up the pieces of paper left behind by students with a lot more energy than I had seen him with the last time.

‘Professor?’ I announced my presence. He smiled when he saw me. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb you.’

‘It’s quite alright. What can I do for you?’ He said, cheerily.

‘I was… I was just wondering if you still had that boggart?’ I asked, almost hoping the answer would be no.

‘Yes, it’s in that wardrobe over there.’ He pointed to the large mahogany wardrobe that I sat next to every lesson. I gave him an almost disbelieving look. ‘I thought you might like that.’ He chuckled softly and I couldn’t help but smile as well. ‘Well, would you do the honours of setting the room? All desks and chairs piled neatly into the far corner behind you, wardrobe just in front of my desk.’ He commanded and went over to his record player; I quickly racked my brain for the charm needed to carry it out. I brought my wand up and every desk and chair made its way to the corner, avoiding hitting myself and Lupin. Soon the wardrobe was in place and Lupin was giving me a strange frown.

‘Did you say an incantation when you did that?’ He asked and I titled my head in misunderstanding. ‘When you moved the furniture I didn’t hear you say anything?’

I honestly didn’t remember; I just did as I was asked. ‘I must have done.’ I told him and shook my head slightly. He didn’t seem convinced, but left it alone for a while.

‘Right, let’s get started.’ He went back to his merry self and stood in front of the wardrobe. ‘What can you tell me about Boggarts? What do they look like? Do you know how to identify one? And can you tell me the spell used to combat one?’

‘Erm… no one really knows what they look like,’ I started, standing nervously, fiddling with my wand. ‘They take on the form of whatever someone fears the most, that’s why people fear them, it exploits your worst fears. It’s a defence mechanism to protect a large group of them from being attacked, I supposed the way you’d identify them is if you find a whole load of the same thing in one place like a drawer in a spare room… or a wardrobe.’ That made Lupin chuckle. ‘I’m not sure about the spell though, I think it’s ridiculous?’

‘Riddikulus.’ He corrected me. ‘But so far, all correct. So, now begs the question, what is going to come out of that wardrobe when it sees you?’ Lupin wandered around to stand behind me and I could see him talking to me through the mirror on the wardrobe. ‘The incantation has to be used in tandem with the thought of something funny. However, seeing as you don’t know what you’re afraid of it will be difficult to know what to turn it into.’ Lupin wandered back over to the record player and put on a soothing melody, before standing behind me and placing his hands on my shoulders, moving me just a little closer to the wardrobe. ‘If you feel up for it, I’d suggest letting the boggart come out of the wardrobe before we think about how we can combat it.’ I nodded, feeling a trickle of bravery wash over me. ‘I’ll be standing right behind you. I won’t let it get you. Be brave.’ He said and raised his wand unlocking the door. 

The door creaked open and nothing happened for a moment. I looked to Lupin who looked just as confused as I did, before turning back and raising my wand getting ready for what might happen. I felt Lupin take a step back, giving me a little more space, that’s when I noticed a small wind brushing over the dust left on the floor from moving the desks. The wind stopped and I suddenly felt cold, like someone else was inside my body and telling it what to do, I felt like I couldn’t breathe and my whole body went rigid, before I fell back and darkness took over.

‘Angelina.’ It was like a voice through water, dulled and incoherent. ‘Angelina.’ It was beginning to clear up and I could feel something cold running over my eyebrows. ‘Angelina!’ The voice yelled through all darkness and shattered it as my eyes flew open and I sucked in as much breath and I could muster, feeling panic flood through my body. ‘It’s alright, deep breaths for me.’ Lupin said as I began to feel my body coming back to me, my limbs were no longer heavy, but I could still feel that panic in the centre of my chest. Lupin had his hand on my shoulder and it felt comforting. ‘You’re okay, I need you to sit up for me though.’ I understood what he was saying, I sat up with everything I had, but in the end I needed his help, my breathing was much heavier than it should have been. ‘No, no, deeper breaths. Come on, you can do it.’ I concentrated hard and I took a deep breath that cleared my mind and I no longer felt panicked. ‘That’s it. Good.’ Lupin sat down on the floor with me and took out a piece of chocolate that again made me feel so much better.

‘What was that?’ I panted, but loving the feel of the chocolate circle my body. 

‘Well,’ Lupin thought for a moment. ‘Judging from your reaction and what you were shouting before you blacked out; I’d say it was possession of some description.’ Lupin looked incredibly concerned.

‘I was shouting?’ I didn’t remember that bit. ‘What was I saying?’

Lupin sighed and reluctantly said: “Don’t make me.” His voice was low and heavy. ‘I’m not sure how you could possibly combat that.’ He admitted.

‘Well… I felt cold at first.’ I tried looking at it from a logical stand point. ‘Then I felt like I couldn’t breathe, like all the air was being sucked out of me… there must be something we can do with that?’ I looked up to see that Lupin’s face and become very pained. I frowned, not quite understanding why.

‘Maybe this wasn’t the best idea.’ He suddenly said, standing up. I tried to get up as well, but still felt weak and fell back down, only for him to catch me. ‘Are you alright?’ 

‘I’m fine. We can’t stop.’ I finally stood up. ‘I have to find out how to defeat a boggart.’ I was absolutely determined that I would not fail at this. Lupin just gave a small, weak smile. ‘Let’s go again.’

‘Fine, we won’t stop just yet, but you have to try and tell me if you think you’re about to faint again. I can’t let that happen too many times, it wouldn’t be right and it certainly wouldn’t help you any.’ Lupin made me promise and I did. I was ready to try again. He, once again, stood a few feet behind me and unlocked the door.

I felt the cold hit me first and closed my eyes trying hard to concentrate on a sunny beach with a crystal clear ocean and a towel with an umbrella sitting in the middle of it. I no longer felt cold and opened my eyes to see that image in front of me. A towel on top of a sandy hill with an umbrella sticking out of the mound. I suddenly burst out with laughter and turned to see Lupin who looked almost horrified and I stopped, feeling the cold slowly drift through me again and falling to the floor. Lupin ran in front of me, forcing the boggart back into the wardrobe and bending down to see if I was okay.

‘Angelina.’ He said, hoping I was alright. ‘Deep breaths, remember. It didn’t get you, you weren’t possessed, you’re fine. You’re okay, I promise.’ I sat up again and took a few deep breaths, thinking back to the sunny beach. ‘That’s it. There we are.’ Once again he sat the other way around next to me and handed me another row of chocolate.

I took a few moments to regain my breathing. ‘Did I do it?’ I asked. Lupin just looked at me and for a moment I thought he wouldn’t answer before he burst out with laughter as well. He looked his age when he laughed, that young carefree side that greeted the class when they came into every lesson. ‘I’m not sure why you’re laughing.’ I chuckled a little.

‘I knew I didn’t hear you say anything.’ He said, calming down. ‘I knew I wasn’t mad… that night when we were having tea, you were stirring without even using your wand, I thought I was seeing things. And again when you moved the furniture, I knew I didn’t hear any words and I can tell you for absolute fact that I did not hear the word riddikulus spoken when you fought off that boggart. You’ve been using non-verbal magic all this time… you are extraordinary Miss Lockwood, absolutely extraordinary.’ Lupin shook his head in disbelief, still panting slightly. 

‘I don’t understand. What’s wrong with non-verbal magic?’ I asked.

‘Nothing.’ Lupin exclaimed. ‘Nothing in the slightest, not something I’d encourage just yet, but for a second year Hogwarts student… I don’t think it’s happened before. Is it something you learned over the summer, or something Darren taught you? Maybe you read it in a book?’

I shook my head. ‘I didn’t know I was doing it.’ I said quietly, suddenly wanting to be anywhere but sitting on the floor with Lupin. 

‘It’s not a bad thing.’ Lupin said softly. ‘It’s… incredible!’ Lupin watched me for a moment. ‘Why don’t we go to see Madame Pomfrey and make sure there’s no lasting damage?’ I nodded, thankful that we were about to leave the claustrophobic classroom. 

I got to the Great Hall and David had been waiting to ask me about my class, he’d always like Lupin’s classes and did really well in them. I told everyone about the boggart and what I’d turned it into, but I decided to leave the non-verbal magic part of it out.


	7. Nonverbal?

Lupin had walked with McGonagall out of the Great Hall after dinner and talked on their way to McGonagall’s office. 

‘Non-verbal magic?’ McGonagall exclaimed. ‘Remus, you must’ve been imagining things. No student below the age of sixteen is even introduced to such a thing. It’s far too advanced.’

‘I am telling you, on three occasions I have observed her using magic without the use of words and once without the use of even her wand.’ Lupin implored. Professor Flitwick had taken an interest in the conversation.

‘Is this Lockwood?’ He interrupted. ‘She barely uses words in my class either. Mostly low level things like levitation, but she definitely shows more promise than most of the students in the class.’

‘You see!’ Lupin caught the attention of a few students and all three of them kept quiet until they reached the confides of McGonagall’s office. ‘She is extraordinary and if she continues to absorb information at this rate, she’ll be finished with the standard curriculum by the end of third year.’

McGonagall stayed silent, waving her wand to the fire and setting it alight. ‘I’ll speak with Professor Dumbledore this week and make him aware… she may be intelligent, but she still has a lot to learn.’

‘It’s true, she’s still acting up in classes, Quidditch has barely made a dent in keeping her occupied.’ Flitwick nodded. ‘I’ve got her for detention for three nights this week.’

‘I’ve got her for one.’ Lupin agreed. ‘Something needs to be done.’


	8. A New Potion and a Broken Hip

The first Quidditch match of the season was only a week away, against Slytherin and I had training once more the evening before the match. I was getting better at flying and with knowing what the signals were to indicate a passing movement or if a bludger was coming at me. My shooting was still a bit off, but my interceptions were brilliant. 

‘Guess we have a playmaker on our hands.’ Katie said as we got changed back into our normal clothes. I just laughed and took the compliment. ‘Darren’s never been great at interceptions, don’t get me wrong he’s good, but his biggest strength is in agile flying and mine is in shooting. Now that we’ve got a natural playmaker, I can’t see us having too much difficulty racking up points.’

Darren appeared at the changing room door. ‘You still not done yet?’ He said with a cheeky grin. Katie threw her scarf at him.

‘We could have been changing Darren!’ She yelled, laughing at the same time. Darren just laughed and handed her scarf back. I wasn’t quite sure what had just happened. ‘Right, let’s go.’ I picked up my broom and followed the rest of the team up to the tower. I suddenly felt the eyes of just about every Gryffindor student we passed, on the seven of us, all of them talking about the game. It was clear that this was what popularity felt like. This is what it felt like to have a large group of people you barely knew, look at you in awe. I moved closer to Darren, not quite adjusting to the attention just yet and he sympathised for me, putting his arm around my shoulders and keeping me close.

‘Lockwood.’ A cold, silky voice called. Both Darren and I turned around to see the black floating robes of Snape appearing just behind us. ‘The younger.’ He distinguished which one of us he was talking to. Darren gave me a sympathetic smile and walked ahead a little. ‘I understand you’re playing Quidditch tomorrow afternoon.’ I nodded. ‘I do hope you don’t lose any limbs as you will be required in the dungeons Sunday morning to prepare a particularly complex potion.’

I didn’t expect loss of any of my limbs was a real concern for him and he was simply trying to scare me. I wasn’t about to admit it, but it worked. ‘Which potion sir?’ I frowned, I had a class with Professor Sprout Sunday evening to look at other uses of Star Grass.

‘Wolfsbane.’ The word put a little fear in the pit of my stomach and I swallowed hard. ‘Read it before you come to my classroom, I will not allow you near a cauldron if you can’t even tell me what ingredients are required and what properties they bring to the potion.’ Snape glared at me for just a moment longer before spinning around on his heel and walking back the way he came. I swallowed hard again and caught up with Darren and the rest of the team.

‘What was that about?’ Darren asked.

‘Just an extra class on Sunday.’ I said, preferring not to tell him it would be wolfsbane I’d be brewing in case it rose suspicion among the rest of the team. 

I barely slept that night, between my excitement for the match and my nervousness for Sunday, it was impossible to clear my mind enough to drift off. I sat up and grabbed one of my new potions books and took it to the common room that was just about abandoned. It was only David and Jack sitting on the sofas trying to finish up their own potions essays.

‘Just the girl we need.’ Jack said, upon seeing me. I slumped down in the comfy chair and pulled my legs up to my chest. ‘Any ideas what use slugs are in shrinking solution?’ I frowned for a moment.

‘Do you mean leeches?’ I asked and both Jack and David looked at each other, realising that they’d gotten it wrong. ‘It’s a dash of leech juice and it prevents blood clotting.’ I laughed, shaking my head and opening up my book. ‘It tells you about it in the chapter before.’

‘I haven’t read that yet.’ David admitted. 

‘Me neither.’ Jack shrugged and both began reading it and jotting down notes.

I flicked through my book, taking mental notes of some of the potions I found interesting as I read through the book. I finally found the wolfsbane potion and even I found it a little overwhelming. There were about six different ingredients that I wasn’t sure I even knew could be used in potions, each step seemed to be incredibly precise and I was almost sure that the quantity of aconite used was highly toxic to any living creature. I carefully read through the reasons for each ingredient and for the first time in my academic life, I struggled. I couldn’t understand why half of the ingredients were being used as I was almost certain some of them cancelled each other out and even then they didn’t follow any logical pattern I could see.

By the time I looked up, the fire was almost out and I was alone. The clock in the far corner said it was nearly three in the morning and I finally felt my eyes getting heavy. I wandered up to bed and didn’t even care that I would be exhausted the following day.

 

The match itself was going to be hard, it was pouring with rain and our vision would be blurred at best. Darren and Katie just gave me sympathetic smiles while McGonagall was telling us about being careful and not to cause too much of a riot with the Slytherins.

‘Looks like you’re in for a tough first game.’ Katie said, smiling down at me. I was tying my boots up a bit tighter, when she came over and began putting an anti-blurring charm on my goggles to make it easier to see things. ‘Don’t worry, just do what we taught you and whatever the result ends up being, it’ll be fine. McGonagall’s right, in this weather it’ll be dodgy flying right from the off.’ I smiled weakly and put my goggles on, hoping I could just make it to the end of the match without conceding too many goals and without falling off my broom.

‘Let’s do this!’ Darren came in and began his usual speech that got the team pumped up and ready to play. I had to admit that I was fairly eager to get out and begin the game.

The rain was heavier than I’d ever seen it at the castle and I dreaded flying around. I followed Darren and Katie around the pitch, doing a few laps and once I felt a little more confident, I waved to the crowd where I knew my friends were cheering me on. The bludgers were released and Katie had to dart out of the way of one that went straight for her. Suddenly the quaffle was right in front of me, without even really thinking, I snatched it out of the air and dove downwards through the crowd of chasers all trying to grab the quaffle from my grasp. 

I passed it to Darren and held up the line of attack. We’d managed to rack up near to one hundred points when I finally started to feel the exhaustion hit. The Slytherin beaters had been trying to knock all of our players off our brooms and yet to succeed, but with my body struggling to keep up with the physical demands it was only a matter of time.

Katie threw me the quaffle and I leaned forward heading straight for the goal posts, the Keeper had to move out of the way of a bludger that had narrowly missed the Gryffindor seeker and I took full advantage. I straightened up and with all the strength I had threw the quaffle at the hoop, I heard the familiar dong of a point being scored and the roar of the crowd cheering for my first goal scored for Gryffindor. I felt immensely proud, but I knew we still had a long way to go before the game was over. I kept pushing my limits and scored four more times, I’d been in an aerial battle with a seventh year Slytherin chaser and intercepted his pass that meant he would have scored, before finally our seeker caught the snitch. We all looked up and saw him flying around the pitch waving the golden orb to everyone and roaring back at the crowd. Slytherin all gave up and began flying back towards the changing rooms. 

I looked to where Jocelyne, David, Jack and Benji were all soaked through, but cheering so loudly for me. I threw my fist up in the air and felt the weight of our victory. Quite by chance when the team began making the victory rounds, I looked down to see the same seventh year Chaser I’d stopped from scoring, he pushed the two beaters out of the way and hit a bludger hard in my direction. I managed to avoid it, before seeing the second bludger heading straight for me as well. I wasn’t as lucky with the second one and felt pain radiate from my hip all the way through the rest of my body, the rain was still heavy and I soon slipped from my broom and hurtled towards the ground, feeling the pull of darkness once again.

 

I woke a few hours later, hearing a crowd of people chatting loudly just at the end of my bed. I opened my eyes and felt an ache in my hip, no one noticed for a while that I was awake, until Jocelyne came around to stand just next to me.

‘Angie, are you alright?’ She asked and suddenly, as if she had been called upon, Madame Pomfrey appeared carrying a goblet of some steaming potion.

‘Everyone back!’ She ordered and the crowd only took half a step back. Pomfrey rolled her eyes and began checking my hip. I hissed at the pain as she applied just a little too much pressure to the bruised area. ‘The bone is broken, nothing worse.’ She said, still assessing. ‘Drink this and make sure you take it while it’s hot. You’ll have brittle bones for a month otherwise.’ Madame Pomfrey helped me sit up and it was agony on my hip, she had put a much softer pillow underneath just for the extra support and given me the steaming potion that smelled disgusting. ‘Well, what did you expect?’ Madame Pomfrey rolled her eyes and wandered away.

That was everyone else’s cue to tell me either how great I did on the pitch or how unfair it was for the Slytherin Chaser to have done that when the game was over. Darren and Jocelyne were closest to me and both were just as frantic as the other, making sure I was okay and that I was comfortable. At some point my under armour had been taken off as well as my boots and I was left in just my riding trousers, vest and red and gold jumper. 

I drank the potion and listened to Benji and Jack’s account of the game, it sounded a lot more action-packed than it had felt and I wondered if they were just exaggerating the events of the match to make it seem a lot cooler than it was. At some point Madame Pomfrey had told everyone that I needed to rest, because I was suddenly very alone and very bored. Jack had tried and succeeded to sneak in my potions book just after dinner, along with a couple of chocolate frogs that had yet gone undiscovered by the matron.

The night had rolled in, but I’d been sleeping most of the evening and didn’t feel very tired, so I got my book out and began working my way through the wolfsbane potion again. I still felt like the potion was well beyond me and began trying to find the logic in its complexity, but it was little use. 

I was finally allowed to leave the hospital wing and only had time to change before running down to the dungeons. Snape hadn’t been pleased that I was late, but didn’t stop me from making the potion. I’d failed entirely and Snape had to throw in some unknown ingredient to stop and explosion happening. He didn’t let me try again that day and I felt like an idiot.

All through the following week, people had complimented me on my first game and all the teachers had asked if I was okay, before heaping on a small work load that I completed in good time. I still had a lot of time on my hands and often walked with Jocelyne around the Black Lake and around the school grounds, just exploring and chatting about the latest gossip in the Gryffindor common room and the rest of the school. I didn’t really understand most of it, even with her very detailed explanations, but I listened and tried to respond with the reaction she wanted from me. It made her laugh every time when she realised what I was doing.


	9. It Was Just A Prank

The rest of the school year was much the same and in fact third year was hardly any different, I’d been in a few more detentions than the previous year, but I was growing into what my parents called ‘a very respectable individual’. I’d eventually mastered the Wolfsbane potion after the third attempt and had been practising it several times since then. Snape had kept reminding me that if I could master Wolfsbane, Veritaserum and Liquid Luck, I would find most other potions easy enough. I’d also been taken into the forest by Hagrid who introduced me to Firenze, a centaur who enjoyed curious students and liked talking about the alignment of planets and what it might mean.

Professor Lupin had taken me out to the Black Lake and we studied the Grindylows and various other creatures that lived just below the surface. Flitwick had even showed me how to correctly perform the Bubble-Head Charm so that I could venture further underwater and find out what else was down there.

I wasn’t allowed to go down there at night and while I was still in third year I wasn’t allowed to go alone. Hagrid and sometimes Professor Sprout would often take the time to stay with me, as long as I resurfaced every fifteen minutes or so. 

Fourth year was a different story, it was Darren’s last year at Hogwarts and during the summer he had a Quidditch try out with the Falmouth Falcons who signed him on almost immediately. Mum and dad had been so proud, they bought him a second broom, just in case he needed it. I’d gotten him a new repair kit that had self-grooming balm for when the tail end got a little out of hand. I could tell he was going to miss Hogwarts and he hated that he’d be leaving me without anyone to look after me when I needed it. 

‘I’ll be fine.’ I told him while we stood on the platform with Katie and the rest of our friends. ‘I don’t need you cramping my style anyway.’ We laughed and said our goodbyes to mum and dad who were very used to watching us leave for Hogwarts, it seemed to be a little easier for them every time.

The year had started and I had the intentions of talking to McGonagall about being an animagus as I had taken a very particular interest in learning how to do it one day. I also had a small list of things I wanted to see if Snape would teach me and even had questions for Hagrid about some of the rare creatures he cared for. Overall I anticipated the year being a good challenge for me, at least until Christmas came along. 

Everyone was excited for Lupin’s first class where he’d promised to teach us stunning spells and how to block them. Benji and Jack were especially excited for it.

‘I cannot wait for this.’ Benji said, trying to hurry everyone into finishing their breakfast quickly. ‘Finally, we get to learn something useful.’ Jocelyne just rolled her eyes and shook her head. She had always found DADA harder than most subjects, she much preferred Divination and Astronomy and even Ancient Runes appealed to her more than anything else. She had ambitions of becoming a star gazer and I thought about introducing her to Firenze, who would’ve loved to teach her about the stars and planet alignments. 

‘I bet we’ll move onto combat and conjuring spells afterwards.’ Jack said thoughtfully. ‘What do you think Angie?’

I looked up from my breakfast and shrugged. ‘Probably. He might leave it until the summer though, probably do it outside where there’s more room and more natural stuff to work with.’

‘I take it you’ve learnt this stuff already?’ David asked. ‘You’ll be able to get us passes on the essays right?’

I laughed, sipping my tea. ‘Actually I haven’t had much to do with duelling until the end of last year.’ I shook my head. ‘Even then it was only defensive.’

There was suddenly a loud crack from further down the table, we all turned to see a first year Gryffindor rubbing the back of his head and the remains of a small firecracker fizzling out on the table in front of him. Benji nodded to the Slytherin table where a group of fifth years were sniggering. Jocelyne tutted and I could see she wished she could do something. I looked down to the first year and wrote a quick note for him to watch what I was about to do. I placed a quick charm on it and it flew down the table as I swung my leg over the bench to face Jack and the teachers table. ‘Cover me.’ I told him and he leaned back just enough that I couldn’t be seen. ‘My brother taught me how to do this during the summer.’ I told everyone.

I had taken a piece of parchment and commanded it to take the shape of a dragon, once it was made I quickly winked to the first year and released the dragon under the table. I commanded it to fly over to the fifth years and roar breathing fire into the air. It had the desired effect as they began shouting and running away from the paper dragon. I kept out of sight of the teachers table and made the dragon spin elegantly in the air before, like a phoenix, setting itself on fire and turning into a pile of ash. I pressed my finger to my lips and the first year who was still rubbing his head, nodded. 

Jocelyne couldn’t help but let a smile escape her. ‘I’ll admit, that was pretty good.’ She said, quietly. I scanned over the teachers table and as far as I could see, none of them were looking directly at me, apart from Professor Lupin who had stopped eating entirely and gave me a heavy frown. My face dropped and I knew I was in big trouble; he wasn’t going to let this one slide. Fire wasn’t something that any of the teachers took lightly in simple pranks, even if you were fairly accomplished. I just hoped he hadn’t noticed I’d done it without my wand. ‘What’s wrong?’ Jocelyne frowned.

‘Lupin saw me.’ I said, shaking my head. 

‘He’s not that harsh is he?’ David asked.

‘I haven’t been in that much trouble with him for a while.’ I admitted, shaking my head, not quite understanding how I could have missed Lupin’s gaze on me from the start. Soon the first year walked past where we were seeing and mouthed ‘thank you’ to me as he walked past. ‘Anytime.’ I said, smiling at him. Jocelyne nudged me under the table and I looked at her, suddenly feeling someone standing directly behind me. I turned to see Lupin, still with his heavy frown, my whole body felt a little warm.

‘You’d best be off to class; I won’t tolerate lateness.’ He said and we all stood up, dragging our feet to his classroom, not risking looking back at him.

The class had been fairly interesting and after a while I had forgotten about the prank from breakfast and it appeared Lupin had at least loosened up about it. Jack and I had been paired together, seeing as I had already learnt the shield charm, he fired off a few stunners and tested the strength of my charm. Jack had actually picked up the charm fairly well and it was my turn to fire off stunners to test him. We’d laughed and had a lot of fun through most of the class. On occasion Lupin would come over to adjust our positioning or give us tips on how to put as much power into the defence and offensive as possible. 

The class was eventually dismissed and I’d hoped to get out of there early so that I wouldn’t be called upon to answer for my earlier infringement in the Great Hall. ‘Lockwood.’ He called, it was quiet, but he knew I’d heard him and everyone gave me a sympathetic smile before telling me they’d see me in the next class. ‘Close the door.’ He said and I did as I was asked. I turned to see him leaning against his desk, as I made my way back to the front of the classroom; he didn’t look best pleased. ‘Would you rather admit to what you did or have me tell you what I saw?’ 

I let slip a look that said I’d rather not do either.

‘You know full well that was a dangerous prank to pull.’ He said, clearly noting my expression. ‘To use fire in the middle of a crowded area, where anyone could have been hurt was not one of your brighter ideas, but to do it in full view of your teachers, is outright idiotic.’ I could tell he was having trouble keeping his voice under control. ‘Do you have anything to say for yourself?’

‘They were first years.’ I didn’t know what else to say. Lupin frowned. ‘Fifth years shouldn’t be allowed to bully first years, doesn’t matter if they’re in another house, it shouldn’t be accepted.’ 

‘I’ll be talking with Professor Snape about the fifth years.’ Lupin put that particular part of the conversation to rest. ‘What I cannot understand, and please tell me if I am missing something, what I can’t wrap my head around is why in the world you would use a possession charm regardless of the situation. You know how it feels to be possessed, we covered that in second year. I would have thought that experience would have given you some insight into the seriousness of-‘

‘It was just a prank.’ I interrupted. ‘It was just a dumb prank.’ I knew hell was about to rain down on me for interrupting, but I hated that he was using my experience with the boggart against me.

‘Did you use your wand?’ He asked, quietly. ‘To cast the charm? Did you use your wand?’ This time was much louder. I shook my head, knowing where this was going. ‘Then you must realise how dangerous it was? Without channelling your power, any number of things can happen. We went over this last year and the year before… I don’t like lecturing, you’re far too smart to be treated like anything else. But if you refuse to take the use of your wand more seriously, then I’m afraid you don’t leave me with much choice.’ He sighed and I knew deep down, he was right. I’d had enough nasty accidents last year through not using my wand to control my magic and he had tried to drill that fact into me. ‘I’ll have to give you detention. You know how this works and it will be boring. In my office, every night this week and if you haven’t learnt this lesson by then, there will more serious consequences. Do you understand?’ He put extra emphasis on each word and I nodded. ‘Good, off you go.’

I quickly turned on my heel and wandered out of the classroom, meeting up with everyone, just as McGonagall was ushering everyone inside.

‘You were there a while?’ Jack asked.

‘Detention every night this week.’ I told him, taking our usual seats, just behind Benji and Jocelyne. David sat just behind us and they all gave me sympathetic looks.

Detention had been just about as boring as Lupin promised it would be; he’d had me write out all the reasons why wandless magic was dangerous in young witches and wizards and why it was common practice to use a wand. I was writing from a curious book that studied wandlore and had a section on how wands were made and how they channelled the individual’s magic, I was especially interested in the theories on why the wand chose a particular wizard. However, every time I tried to read about it, Lupin had told me to get back on track and continue my punishment. It was unbearable, the boredom was killing me and the fourth night I’d fallen asleep.

I was tempted not to show up to the last one of the week, standing outside Lupin’s classroom door and trying so hard to find the will to knock, but I couldn’t, I really couldn’t take any more. I leaned against the frame and slid down to the floor, I hated it, I hated being bored and I hated that one of my favourite teachers was doing this to me. I looked up and realised that Lupin, with his arms folded and a small smile on his face, was leaning against his door frame staring down at me.

‘Bored yet?’ He asked and I couldn’t help but laugh. I stood up and sighed. ‘Come in, I’ve just put some tea on.’ I frowned, he’d never offered tea during my detentions before. He put his hand on my shoulder and guided me up to his office. ‘I’m sorry I had to do it this way, but it seemed you simply weren’t learning through any other means.’ He said, gesturing towards one of the comfy armchairs next to the fire. I sat, wondering what exactly his plan was. 

Lupin handed me a cup of tea and I automatically went to stir it without using my wand, before catching his eye and using the spoon. He gave a quick smile. ‘I’m not writing lines tonight?’ I asked, sipping the hot tea and feeling it warm me up a bit.

‘Not tonight.’ Lupin shook his head. ‘No, I think you’ve learned your lesson well enough for now. But I do need you to promise me that you won’t go using wandless magic until I teach you how to do it properly in a few years.’

‘Why can’t you teach me now?’

‘Because, you’re too young.’ He shook his head. ‘You’re still growing and your power is still settling, disrupting that can have devastating effects and I wouldn’t want to interfere with it.’ Lupin sipped his tea and I understood what he was saying, there was some branches of magic I didn’t quite understand just yet and this was one of them, I wasn’t about to go poking around at it. ‘You still haven’t given me an answer.’ I frowned. ‘You used a low level possession charm, what made you do that? You remember what the boggart did to you both last year and the year before?’

‘Of course.’ I snapped. ‘I don’t know I just wanted to get back at Slytherin.’ I shrugged, hating that I just snapped at Lupin.

‘So you used the one thing that scares you the most to scare others?’ Lupin asked, his features changing into concern. I nodded. ‘I’d move away from that type of thinking very quickly if I were you, the most feared witches and wizards in the world started out by thinking like that and it has led them on staggeringly destructive paths. I’d hate for the same to happen to you Angelina.’

‘Angie.’ I said, quietly. ‘I’m not going to end up like that.’ 

‘No one ever thinks they’ll end up like that, they just wake up one day and suddenly take notice of what they’ve done to the people around them.’ Lupin said with a heavy sadness that was unbearable to watch. There was a thick silence that surrounded the both of us for a couple of minutes, before Lupin spoke again. ‘Now, why don’t we move onto slightly more positive topics? You’ve been given permission to explore the Black Lake on your own this year?’

We began talking about the things I’d already found in the Lake and about some of the things that I might have missed last year. We had moved onto some of the things I might have liked to learn that year and at that point I was still too afraid to bring up the topic of werewolves, but from what Darren had said, fourth year was the year we would study them in depth.

When we were done, Lupin walked me to the Great Hall and I caught up with my friends, who all congratulated me on getting through a week of boredom when Lupin was well out of earshot. We laughed and I caught up on what was happening around the school, not much by the sounds of things.


	10. Lionfish and Christmas

Christmas was creeping closer and closer and I had written to my parents asking for their advice; I wanted to know their thoughts on dark magic and if it was worth me learning about it. My father had written back the day after.

Angie,

I haven’t shown your mother the letter you sent, I imagine you know the sort of reaction she would have given her position within the ministry and truthfully, I don’t really want you exposed to those branches of magic at all. Having said that, I understand your curiosity and ask only this; while I want you to learn everything you can, be careful. Dark magic can be very addictive and it is a slippery slope, I am asking you to refrain from using any spell you find associated with the dark arts. Learn from a distance.

I’m glad you’re exploring the Black Lake, though I think both your mother and I would feel more comfortable if you had Hagrid or even Professor Lupin with you in case something goes wrong and you need some form of assistance. However, you’re old enough and smart enough to know what you’re doing so, naturally, it’s your choice.

I hope your werewolf friend is doing okay, Damocles is a rather foul man and it’s despicable that he’s made a potion that no werewolf can afford. I expect Dumbledore would see that your friend is taken care of though.

Your mother and I will see you for Christmas, by which time I hope you have more exciting news for us.

Love you always.

Dad

P.S. think about what I said. Do not underestimate dark magic in the slightest.

I reread the letter several times and by the third reading Jocelyne had asked if it was bad news. I shook my head and shovelled in another mouthful of bacon.

‘No, it’s just my dad. I told him I was exploring the Black Lake on my own. He thinks I should have someone with me all the time, you know, just in case.’ I didn’t really lie, not exactly anyway. 

‘He’s right though.’ She said and I noted the worried look she had. ‘Especially at this time of year, it’s freezing, you could get stuck down there and no one would know to go in after you.’ 

‘We could go with you.’ Jack suggested. ‘You said you were going after breakfast, well David and I have that Transfiguration report to write and Jocelyne still has the shield charm to perfect. We could do it while you’re exploring?’ I looked to Jocelyne who sighed and nodded.

‘Fine, but I’m still not going to get this damn charm, doesn’t matter where it is.’ Jocelyne let slip a small grin as Benji giggled at her. 

‘Lockwood.’ A voice came from behind me. It was Professor Sprout. ‘I hear you’re going to the Lake again today?’ I nodded, still trying to swallow the toast I had bitten off. ‘Any chance you could get me some gillyweed while you’re down there? You’ll find it fairly close to the mountainside in the shallow parts, maybe a six-inch jar’s worth?’

‘Sure.’ I shrugged. ‘Anything else?’

‘No, no the gillyweed should be enough. Just make sure you retain some of the water. I need it fresh.’ Professor Sprout said as she checked her watch and wandered off out of the Great Hall.

We all made our way down to the lake and Jocelyne was right, it was freezing cold and I didn’t imagine the water would be much better. I took off my jeans and t shirt and replaced them with shorts and a tight vest that kept my core warm. ‘Does that really work?’ David asked as I began strapping my wand to my thigh.

‘Seems to keep me going.’ I shrugged. To an outsider, it probably would have been very funny to see four students wrapped up in scarves and thick coats and one in just shorts and a vest. ‘I’ll see you in fifteen minutes.’ I said as I began wandering into the freezing water. I turned back and made a face to let them know how cold it was before casting the Bubble-head Charm and diving into the murky water.

I swam around for a while, just watching some of the Lionfish swim around, not minding the fact that I was there. I went further in and came across a few of the Merpeople who again, gave me suspicious looks, but didn’t bother me in the slightest. I checked my watch and realised that I’d been down there a lot longer than I had intended and made my way back to the surface. I waved to where my friends were, but they didn’t seem to see me so I swam back to see them.

‘Right on time.’ Jack waved when he finally did see me. ‘You good?’ I gave them a thumbs up and dived under the water again, this time going in search of something I’d seen the last time I was down there. 

I found the spot I had been exploring and it seemed a couple of Grindylows were swimming around a large area of Puffapods. Most of them were an orange colour and you could just about see the pink beans inside, but one area stood out as a blue-green colour and the beans appeared to be much darker. It seemed to attract the interest of one of the Grindylows as he came over to see what I had found, I let him sniff around for a while before he decided it wasn’t worth whatever fuss I was making over it and swam away. I chuckled a little and pulled out a small jar that I had strapped against my thigh, just next to my wand, I was about to enlarge the jar when I remembered what Lupin had said about wandless magic. I sighed and brought out my wand to enlarge the jar and carefully eased one of the blue-green Puffapods into the jar without disturbing the seeds at all. I sealed the jar and stared at the strange plant life taking note of the fact that there didn’t seem to be any obvious reason why it was a different colour.

I didn’t risk shrinking the jar down again and simply began swimming back to shore. I had become a little too accustomed to the water temperature and found the air to be colder against my skin. I panted heavily stepping out of the Lake, still staring at the jar and trying to see it clearer in the light, nothing seemed to change though. 

‘What’s that?’ David asked.

‘A Puffapod.’ I answered, still watching for any changes.

‘I thought they were orange.’ Jack wandered over and looked at the jar with me, I handed it to him so he could get a better look.

‘There’s a whole load of them that are orange, but maybe a couple dozen that are like this.’ I explained. ‘I’m going to see what Professor Sprout says.’ I regained my breath and started walking back towards the Lake.

‘You’re going back?’ Jocelyne called. The water was up to my ankles when I turned back.

‘I still need to grab the gillyweed, it’ll probably take me a bit longer though, it’s about half way across and near the mountainside.’ I explained and Jocelyne just sighed.

‘If you’re not back in thirty minutes, I’m going in after you.’ It was a threat I knew it, but I couldn’t help the laugh. I nodded to keep the peace and cast the Bubble-head charm on myself again, before diving into the water. I swam as fast as I could towards the mountainside, I looked around to see if there was anything of particular interest on my way towards the gillyweed, but it was just a flock of Lionfish swimming around what looked like the Giant Squid I’d heard so much about. I decided it was best to avoid it for now as my energy levels were a little low. I was starving already, but lunch was still a couple of hours away.

Finally, I’d reached the patch of gillyweed. The stuff grew so fast, I wondered how the whole Lake wasn’t covered in it already. I brought out the six-inch jar and enlarged it to its original size as I began cutting away at some of the fresher looking part of the plant, it took a while and my hand was killing me from all the cutting. I wasn’t quite done yet either as I’d only filled the jar half way. I rested the seal on the jar and wedged it into a part of the rock while I decided to see how far the gillyweed went around the mountainside. 

As it turned out, it was quite far and I still hadn’t reached the end before I needed to turn back and finish gathering the gillyweed. My hands felt a little stiff and it was a struggle to collect the rest of the plant, but eventually it was done. I checked the time and it was close to my thirty minutes. I quickly sealed the jar and shrank it down, strapping it to my leg again and swimming back.

I could feel my body start to struggle, both with the lack of energy and the freezing cold temperatures. I swam past the giant squid again and accidentally knocked one of the Lionfish who suddenly looked very angry and bit my leg, before swimming away back to the flock. It wasn’t bad and it had only been a young fish, but I’d read that in large dosages they could be venomous. I needed to get back to shore and treat what was probably a now infected wound. I swam hard and could see the surface getting closer and closer.

I burst out of the water, sucking in fresh breath and swam back to where Jocelyne was furious that I’d taken nearly forty-five minutes to collect some gillyweed. I could see David running towards us with Lupin on his heels and I suddenly felt the sharp cold hit my stiff body. 

‘Are you alright?’ She said pointing to where I’d been bitten. I looked down and frowned.

‘I found the giant squid.’ I said, feeling my whole body weaken. I could hear Lupin and David arrive next to me. ‘There was a flock of Lionfish.’ I suddenly felt that cold, rigid sensation come back and I couldn’t stand any more. Jack and Lupin were at my side straight away.

‘Benji, go straight to Madame Pomfrey, tell her it’s a Lionfish bite. We’ll be right behind you!’ Lupin shouted. ‘Angelina, you need to listen to me. You’re about to go into shock, the venom will start to make you hallucinate, you cannot trust what you see.’ Lupin told me. ‘David, Jocelyne, go to the water’s edge, you’ll find leeches, grab as many as you can and put them on top of the wound.’ I watched as Jocelyne laughed and floated over my head, leaving a trail of iridescent sparkles behind her.

‘Wow.’ I breathed, feeling the sparkles hit my body ad feeling a tingle of warmth spread through the areas it touched.

‘She’s beginning to hallucinate.’ Jack said, his voice was soft, like he was whispering. ‘Professor, what do we do?’

‘Stop her from going into shock.’ Lupin said, his voice like a whisper as well. I could feel something happening to my leg, but I couldn’t quite place, all I could concentrate on was the sky changing colours and getting closer and closer. It was like it was speeding up, because the second I felt it hit me, my body began to shake violently and I could barely get a breath out. I could feel someone warm and strong, carrying me somewhere, but before I could figure out who or where. I saw the image of a wolf walking beside me and urging me to follow him wherever he went.

I followed the wolf, who sprinted to the edge of the Forbidden Forest and he sat staring up at the fullest moon I’d ever seen, it was so big and fear suddenly struck my body as I realised that I needed to get back to the castle, I shouldn’t have been out so late at night. The problem was that my feet wouldn’t move, none of my body would. I could hear a harsh growling coming from behind me, getting closer and closer and I couldn’t even turn to see what it was; I was frozen solid. 

The wolf just watched me, not understanding that I couldn’t move, before running straight for me and leaping up to knock me down, shattering my frozen body. I fell to the hard rocky floor and watched as the wolf and the werewolf that had been inches away from me, fought and tore each other apart. I felt a burning energy surge through me and I used it to stand up and sprint as fast as I could towards the castle. I ran straight for the hospital wing and the door seemed to get further and further away with every step I took towards it. I pushed harder and harder, fighting to get to the door. The wolf had caught up and ran beside me and suddenly we both ran straight through the heavy wooden doors.

My eyes snapped open and I felt my body jerk upwards. I leaned over my bed and threw up straight into a bucket that was being held by Jack, who had been taken very much by surprise. I looked down at the black tar-like liquid that had come out and tried to suck in as much breath as I could, but I just ended up coughing violently. 

‘That’s it, get it all out.’ Jack said, rubbing my back as I settled into a facing down position. ‘Madame Pomfrey says, the sooner you wake up properly, the better you’ll be.’

‘What does that mean?’ It was if I’d been crying and couldn’t speak properly. Jack suddenly called Madame Pomfrey over and stepped away from the bed. ‘Jack?’ I called and tried to reach out for him.

‘Looks like we’re in the clear.’ Madame Pomfrey sighed and came around to face me. ‘Miss Lockwood, who am I?’

‘Pomfrey.’ I coughed out, feeling a stinging in the back of my throat. 

‘Do you know where you are?’

‘Hospital wing.’

‘And are you aware of what’s happened?’

‘Lionfish.’ I continued to cough and my whole body felt like it was weakening all over again.

‘That’s right, you were bitten by a young Lionfish, while it wasn’t fatal, it could have had very serious consequences, lucky your friends were there and lucky Professor Lupin knew to put leeches on the wound to suck out most of the venom.’ Madame Pomfrey looked at me, like she was looking for some kind of confirmation that she had been heard, but I was in too much pain to say how grateful I was, I just wanted my body back, I wanted to feel warm and without pain again. ‘I’m afraid you’ll feel like this over the next two or three days, but after that it should get better and you’ll be home in time for Christmas.’ I nodded and just tried to concentrate on taking deeper breaths, like Lupin had taught me to do.

Jack came back into view and smiled down at me. He was in his school uniform and I frowned. ‘You’ve been delirious for nearly a week now.’ He explained. ‘Pomfrey says you’ve been hallucinating and living in a sort of trance. But she’s done her best and when you’ve been awake enough to drink anything, she’s been on hand to make you drink it.’

‘Week?’ I croaked.

‘Yeah, everyone else is in Dark Arts just now, but Lupin said I could come and see you and just catch up later in the week.’ Jack smiled. ‘You gave us a bit of a scare though.’

‘Sorry.’ I tried to give a smile, but I wasn’t sure what it came out as.

‘It’s fine.’ He laughed and it was the best sound I’d heard in a week. ‘I delivered the gillyweed to Sprout and that weird coloured Puffapod, she said thanks for the gillyweed and when you felt up for it, you could go and see about the Puffapod. Seems like she didn’t know what was up with it either… oh, and I wrote to your parents for you, I told them not to panic and that Madame Pomfrey was doing everything she could. They visited just the once, your dad seems to really know his stuff, because he was talking about the best treatment for Lionfish bites with Pomfrey. Darren came down as well, I think he just wasn’t surprised to find you in here again.’

I gave a small laugh that made me cough again and Jack helped me sip some water.

‘Jocelyne was pretty annoyed that you took so long, she might start shouting when she finds you’re awake.’ I just rolled my eyes and Jack shrugged. ‘You know it’s only because she loves you. Anyway, when Pomfrey says it’s okay, I got you some chocolate from Honeydukes, she said if you make it four hours without throwing up you can have some. So, you know, make it four hours without throwing up.’ I couldn’t help but laugh again.

‘Thank you.’ I breathed and Jack just shook his head.

‘Anytime.’ 

I stayed where I was for a while, too afraid to move in case I had a coughing fit or I threw up, but it didn’t seem to make much difference. Everyone had come to visit me over the next couple of days and as Jack had predicted, Jocelyne had blown up about the whole thing, she hugged me in the end and I was more confused than I was before. Darren and Katie had come down and told me the Quidditch match had been postponed due to the weather anyway so I didn’t need to worry too much about letting them down. 

Jack had visited the most and helped me catch up on work, it had only taken a couple of hours, but it kept me occupied for a while. ‘I spoke to Lupin today and he said he’d come down later today if you felt up for it. I’ve got an essay to write, but he said if it was going to be too stressful then you needn’t bother. It’s not as if you don’t know it all already.’ We both laughed and Jack checked his watch. ‘Hey, look at that, four hours without throwing up, that means you get chocolate.’ He seemed pretty excited and took the bar from inside the drawer beside my bed. Jack broke me off the smallest piece he could and handed it over. ‘Pomfrey says you can’t have too much as you’re still in recovery, but I’m sure that much couldn’t hurt.’

We sat and ate for a while, I had felt a little nauseous after I ate the chocolate, but the feeling soon subsided. I didn’t risk another piece after that and Jack put it away in the drawer. He lifted his head and nodded to someone walking towards us. It was Lupin who was limping slightly and looked very tired. ‘He’s been ill again, still managed to carry you back up to the castle though.’ Jack whispered and a small amount of panic floated across my mind. 

‘Jack.’ He nodded and slumped down in the chair opposite with some amount of effort. ‘Angelina, how are you feeling?’

‘Better.’ I nodded.

‘I’ll leave you in peace.’ Jack said standing up and shoving a couple of books back into his bag. ‘Do you need anything before I leave?’ He asked and I took note of how tired he looked as well. 

‘I’m good.’ I shook my head. ‘Thanks for staying with me though.’

‘Anytime, I’ll come and get you tomorrow, Pomfrey says you should be good to go in the afternoon.’ Jack nodded and moved my water so I could reach it better, before saying his goodbye and leaving Professor Lupin and I alone.

‘He very much cares for you.’ Lupin commented, adjusting his position in his chair. I frowned at him and he just smiled. ‘You have a brilliant mind Angelina, but when it comes to simple social cues, you’re not the sharpest… anyway, back to the point at hand. How are you? Honestly?’

There was something Lupin’s voice that said he knew how I really felt about the whole thing. I couldn’t help but let a small tear escape my eye. ‘I was scared.’ I admitted.

‘I’m not surprised.’ Lupin smiled softly. ‘Lionfish, while friendly enough looking, can cause us to live through some very scary experiences. You’ve been experiencing the effects of the venom for a week now. I’d be very shocked if you came out of it feeling the same as you did beforehand.’

‘Thank you, professor.’ I swallowed the lump in my throat.

Lupin waved his hand. ‘My job, first and foremost, is to make sure you’re safe. No thanks necessary, though I would ask that you be more careful next time. I don’t expect you to go jumping in that Lake again so soon, but I also expect that you won’t be kept out of it forever. So all I can ask is that you carefully research all the creatures you come across and avoid any venomous ones you can?’

‘Yes, sir.’ I smiled weakly. ‘I won’t let it happen again.’ I promised.

‘Good, now, have you written to you parents? I’m they’ll want to know you’re okay.’

I nodded, I’d written to them the day I woke up to tell them I was fine and that I’d see them when I came home for Christmas. It suddenly occurred to me that Lupin and most of the staff always stayed in the castle at Christmas, I’d heard it was always a nice place to be, but I imagined it must’ve been lonely. 

Jack had collected me from the hospital wing, like he promised he would and before I knew it Darren was helping me off the train as we pulled onto Platform 9 ¾. Christmas had been nice, the only downside was my dad was checking my leg every few hours, just to check it was healing over properly. I just rolled my eyes and let him do whatever made him feel most comforted. 

We’d gone to St Mungo’s so that I could get the bandages removed and my father looked right in his comfort zone. He breezed around the place like he owned it and everyone seemed to have a lot of respect for him, most of the female nurses had a crush on him, according to Darren they did anyway, I didn’t really see it. 

Finally, I was allowed to walk around for a while to get the blood going in my body again. My father had taken me on his rounds, hoping that I would learn something while he spoke to his patients and also hoping that they could be cheered up a bit when they met me. It seemed to do the trick as most patients asked me about my time at Hogwarts and if I liked having a Healer for a father, I just copied what Darren did and laughed whilst complimenting my dad. 

We came across a ward where a man had not only been attacked by a herd of centaurs, but also been heavily bitten by a werewolf. His chances of surviving weren’t great.

‘We think he was running away from the centaurs, who were running away from the werewolf.’ My dad explained quietly. ‘It’s a wonder he survived the initial attack, but to survive the bite as well will be a miracle.’

‘The full moon was last night?’ I asked.

‘If he makes it through the night,’ my dad nodded, ‘and he wants somewhere to change every month under the wolfsbane potion, we’ll move him to a secure room downstairs and monitor what happens. But unfortunately, I’m not so sure he’ll make it that far.’ I frowned. ‘The wounds are infected, there’s nothing to be done for werewolf bites. They’re highly toxic and we don’t know much about the condition in general.’

I thought for a moment, before deciding there wasn’t anyone better to talk to than my father. ‘The potion is really complicated. Why did Damocles stop his research before he refined into something simpler?’

‘Because,’ my father sighed, ‘he wasn’t really a good man. He was very prejudice against werewolves and simply made it to get the attention and to say that he had done ground-breaking research in the field. Problem is, he made it so complex that trying to figure out what in the world each ingredient is supposed to do makes it harder to refine. So, for the moment we’re stuck with a very complicated and very expensive potion for people who can barely afford to live under a roof or buy food, let alone afford an antidote… we’ll get there one day.’ My father smiled, assuring me. It didn’t do much good though, I couldn’t help but think about how the potion could be made simpler, I came to no conclusion, but it didn’t stop me from trying to reach one.


	11. Packs Not Herds

The term started up again and I managed to get back on my broom and train for the Quidditch matches we had coming up. It was tough in the beginning, but soon I got back into the swing of things and I managed to brew Wolfsbane for the first time without needing to look in the book. I would have been more pleased with myself if something about the store cupboard hadn’t bothered me so much.

The supply of Aconite looked untouched and exactly the way I’d left it the month previous, it was as if Snape wasn’t using it at all. I tried to put it out of my mind, but it was difficult, everything I’d read about the potion made me think that half of it wasn’t even necessary. Adding wormwood seemed to cancel out the bat blood, and the heat during the eleventh step made everything you did before the fourth step just about useless as the ingredients would just evaporate. It was a difficult one to understand and I wanted to ask Snape why you bother adding something that cancelled out another ingredient. 

‘To be honest, I have no idea what you just said.’ Jocelyne said at breakfast one morning when I was trying to explain what I thought about the potion, problem was, we hadn’t covered it in class just yet.

‘If everything you do before the fourth step is useless by the eleventh,’ Jack said, thinking on what I’d said. ‘Why don’t you just use basic solution and begin from step five?’

‘Basic solution contains some hallucinogenic substances.’ I explained. ‘You’d be basing the entire potion on an imagined principal and werewolves aren’t that susceptible to illusion.’ We gathered our books and headed for DADA. I kept thinking on what kind of solution could be used and came to a conclusion. ‘Maybe a solution that induces sleep?’ I said to Jack as we took our seats. ‘Wolfsbane was made as a way of putting the wolf to sleep and keeping the human awake, maybe it wasn’t the idea that was bad, just the way Damocles decided to go about it.’ Jack nodded, understanding what I was saying and I noticed that Lupin, though I was sure he didn’t hear what I was saying, gave me a strange look before calling the register and starting the class.

‘Right,’ he said and wandered cautiously around to the other side of the desk, ‘this term is where we start the real work… nocturnal beasts.’ The hair on the back of my neck stood up. ‘More specifically Unicorns.’ I sighed in slight disappointment. ‘Unicorns are highly intelligent creatures, but very dangerous, should you choose to face up against one.’ I began getting out another book, I’d already read up on unicorns and seen one when I’d had detention in the Forest one night. ‘However, trying to understand their behaviour and why they exist as they do, depends on various other creatures that live in the forest. So, let’s name some creatures we know that exist at night in the Forbidden Forest?’ Hands went up and various creatures were shouted out.

‘Werewolves?’ My head snapped up; Garrett, a Slytherin student who was as thick as they came. I glanced at Lupin who had slightly pained expression on his face. ‘I mean there must be right? Whole herds of them.’ Garrett shrugged.

‘I would assume so.’ Lupin shrugged and was about to move on.

‘They aren’t herds, they’re packs.’ I commented, more to myself, but it seemed I said it louder than I was expecting to.

‘What did you say Lockwood?’ Garrett snapped.

I sighed. ‘A group of werewolves is a pack not a herd. And more to the point, why would there be a pack of werewolves in the Forbidden Forest?’

‘I don’t know, maybe Hagrid’s breeding them.’ He defended. I just gave him a look and let slip a laugh.

‘Do you even know what a werewolf is?’ I laughed, Jocelyne and Benji sniggering behind me. ‘They are human, you know? A Half-breed?’

‘I know what a half-breed is!’ Garrett was starting to get really angry now, but I didn’t care. He was an idiot. ‘Werewolves are dangerous creatures. Yeah, they’re human, but humans with a disease that they can pass onto anyone!’

‘It’s not a disease!’ I said exasperated. ‘My god, is this really worth the argument?’ I turned to my friends and we laughed a little.

‘That’s quite enough.’ Lupin said, in a tone of voice that said he wasn’t pleased with the fact I had just started an argument in the middle of his class. ‘Miss Lockwood, continue your argument… you said that lycanthropy is not a disease, then please enlighten the class to what it is.’ Lupin folded his arms and leaned back against his desk. The entire class turned to face me. Jocelyne gave me a look that said, if I didn’t present a good argument then I was in a lot of trouble. I swallowed and sat back in my chair.

‘It’s not a disease.’ I started. ‘Werewolves are just Half-breeds, it’s the same as Hagrid being a half-giant, they simply exist as an individual creature with much more visible magical properties than any normal witch or wizard. Yes, okay, once a month they get pretty dangerous,’ I turned to Garrett, feeling my frustration at his comments get the better of me. ‘And to be honest, if you’re stupid enough to go wandering around the Forest during a full moon, then maybe you deserved to get-‘

‘Back on track.’ Lupin commanded and it put a small pool of fear in the bottom on my stomach.

‘Being bitten by a werewolf, is a terrible thing. I’m not arguing that, but the results of that bite means only that the witch or wizard contains a new branch of magical blood that they didn’t have before.’ I concluded. ‘Say I knew someone that was a werewolf and he was my best friend or a family member, yeah once a month I’d stay as far away as I could get, but it’s not a disease so you can’t catch it just by being near one and that person would still be the same person they were before. They would just need a bit more support and patience from the people around them… it’s not a disease.’ I finished and the whole class began turning back to Lupin who looked a strange combination of shocked and thoughtful.

‘Well,’ he said, not taking his eyes off of me, ‘I have to say, I’m not sure I’ve heard you say quite so much in my class before.’ There was a hum of laughter that circled the room. ‘Let’s move on.’

The class continued and I let out a sigh of relief that I wasn’t in trouble in front of the whole class, I fully expected Lupin to ask me to stay behind at the end, but it seemed he’d either completely forgotten about what happened or he was just choosing to ignore it, because he barely looked at me once he’d dismissed the class.

‘Well that was eventful.’ Jack said as we walked towards the dungeons. ‘How do you know so much about werewolves anyway?’

I shrugged. ‘I just read things.’ I told him. ‘Not much is really known about them though. It’s odd really.’

‘What about that guy who invented wolfsbane?’ 

‘Damocles?’ Jack nodded. ‘He stopped his research after he made the potion, leaving everything pretty much unfinished and far too expensive for a werewolf to afford to make. My dad doesn’t think he was a good man from the start.’

‘What about what you were saying earlier?’ Jack tried to think back. ‘About using a sleep inducing solution? None of the ingredients for that are too expensive, in fact most of it can be found in the back garden if you really wanted to make it and it doesn’t evaporate unless you expose it to really high temperatures.’

I shrugged and laughed. ‘I’m not a ground-breaking researcher Jack, it was just an idea.’

‘An idea no one else seems to have had.’ He smiled. ‘You could be the one that saves the werewolves.’ Jack made a howling sound and it made everyone laugh. 

I’d always gotten along with Jack, he always pushed me to do better and in recent years, tried harder during his classes, which made it easier for me to concentrate on my own studies if I didn’t have everyone asking me the answers to every question we’d been given. 

I thought about asking Snape about the solution and stayed behind at the end of the class, hoping it wouldn’t take too long so he couldn’t shout at me for wasting his time.

‘Lockwood.’ He said and waited for me to speak.

‘Professor, I just wanted to ask a question about the Wolfsbane potion.’ I said as quickly as I could. ‘It’s just that I’ve realised half of what you put into it cancels out the other half and I was thinking that maybe basing it on a sleep-inducing solution would be a better alternative to the first five steps?’

Snape sneered for just a moment. ‘Write me a detailed report on what you believe to be a better course of action than a man who has spent the better part of a decade coming up with a cure for Lycanthropy, and I might allow you to test your theory.’

I knew that was his way of saying “well done for thinking outside the box and let’s give it a go”, and it was the best answer I could have hoped for.

‘Thank you, professor.’ I nodded and rushed out of the room.

‘Well?’ Jack was waiting with everyone else for me outside the dungeons.

‘As long as I can show him how I’ve worked it out, he’ll let me try and make it.’ I smiled. Jack just laughed and hugged me.

‘That’s brilliant news!’ He said and everyone joined in the hugging, before we ran to avoid being late to our next class.

 

I spent the next month making notes on what I thought in each class and encouraged my friends to ask me questions about what I’d written down, it got me into the habit of thinking about how I’d come to each conclusion and why I thought one ingredient would work more efficiently over the other. The one thing I kept in the back of my mind was the similarities between the werewolf transformation and animagus transformations. I went straight to McGonagall to ask her about it.

‘It is not common practice to become animagus,’ McGonagall thought about what it was like to transform, ‘but to achieve this is the mark of someone who has determination and is focussed enough to learn a more complex branch of transfiguration. Is this something that interests you?’

‘It is Professor,’ I nodded, still taking notes as she spoke. ‘But for the short term, I’m interested the similarities between werewolf transformations and animagus transformations. As far as I understand there aren’t many, but the two use similar pieces of magic, they have to, you’re still going from human to something not human?’

‘True.’ McGonagall nodded. ‘But werewolves cannot control the change and go through an unbearable amount of physical pain and torture. No one elects to be a werewolf Miss Lockwood. I trust you understand that much.’ There was something in her expression that said she had her suspicions of my questions and I needed to do something to steer her away from it. I wasn’t quite ready to admit that I knew Professor Lupin was a werewolf just yet.

‘I’d like to learn how to become Animagus.’ I said. McGonagall’s eyebrows raised just a touch.

‘You realise that it will take an incredibly vigorous physical toll on you. It will be a tremendous amount of hard work and you will have to get your parents’ permission to learn such magic?’

‘I understand.’ I nodded. I figured if there was any way of trying to understand what it was like to transform then this was the way to start. ‘I’ll write to them tonight.’

McGonagall nodded. ‘Come and see me when they’ve sent you the papers and we will begin.’

I gathered my books and nearly ran straight into Professor Sprout on my way up to the common room.

‘Lockwood!’ She exclaimed.

‘Sorry Professor.’ I said, panting slightly. ‘I was just on my way back to the common room.’

‘That’s quite alright.’ She said, getting her own breath back. ‘I was just about to send someone to find you. One of the beans has flowered.’ She smiled with excitement. 

I’d gone down to the greenhouse after I’d been allowed to leave the hospital wing and Professor Sprout had agreed to research the plant I’d found, she said it was curious in the first place that it was found underwater, but more so that it was a strange colour. 

I followed her to the greenhouse and she showed me the tank she had been keeping the pod in, it had turned upside down and flowers that looked a lot like blue orbs had sprouted from the bottom of the pod.

‘Haven’t touched them yet, thought it best to keep them like this until we can study them a bit further.’ Sprout explained. ‘I’ll keep you updated and feel free to come down any time and take a look.’ 

Professor Sprout explained further about what she had observed over the course of the week and I decided that I’d leave most of the researching to her, she had a lot more experience than I had with plants.

‘Do we know why they’ve suddenly flowered?’ I asked, stilling staring at the strange orbs.

‘No clue, happened only a few moments before I ran into you.’ Sprout shook her head. I sighed and looked out at the dark sky. The orbs looked a lot like big blue moons. ‘A thought?’ She asked and I looked up to see that Sprout had been watching me. ‘I’ve seen that face on your brother one or two times, not as often as I’ve seen it on you though. Something come to you?’

‘Maybe.’ I smiled. ‘I’d best get back up to the Tower, regardless of what most of the teachers think, I do actually make an effort with the assignments.’ It made Professor Sprout laugh and nod, let me leave to get back to the common room. 

I wandered through the nearly empty corridors, thinking on the strange plant that I’d found beneath the Black Lake. I wandered past the DADA corridor and saw Professor Lupin talking to a couple of sixth year girls, who seemed to be laughing at a joke he told, when it hit me. I couldn’t help myself, I ran straight up to him, scaring the students slightly.

‘Sorry.’ I apologised quickly. ‘Professor, I just wanted to ask you a quick question. Is there a blue moon this month?’ Lupin looked entirely taken aback and the sixth years wandered away looking a little annoyed that they’d been interrupted.

‘I’m sorry?’ Lupin frowned.

‘Is there a blue moon this month?’ I repeated, I took a few deep breaths to calm myself down. ‘Puffapod beans flower when they come into contact with something solid, but they take the majority of their energy from the sun and if they’re wild and without much chance of touching something solid, will flower in the month of the harvest moon. These ones might work on the same basis but with a blue moon instead. There’s a blue moon this month isn’t there?’

‘There is.’ Lupin said slowly and I suddenly realised why he had looked so taken back. ‘I’m sorry Angelina, I’m struggling to understand what you’re talking about? And why would you not ask Firenze about the blue moon?’ There was a faint accusation in his voice and I knew I needed to cover quickly.

‘I’m sorry Professor.’ I said, frowning and thinking very quickly. ‘You were just the first teacher I saw and I… I just got excited.’ I backed away from Lupin, who seemed somewhat satisfied with my answer. I didn’t look back, instead I just hurried back to the common room and thought on what kind of day it had been.


	12. Animagus

Lupin watched Angelina wander away and panic flooded his being. She knew, she definitely knew and he was about to be exposed. There was only one thing he could do and that was go to Dumbledore and explain why he was handing in his resignation.

‘I won’t accept it Remus.’ Dumbledore held up his hand to silence the Dark Arts teacher. 

‘Albus, you must see reason.’

‘Are you going to refuse the wolfsbane potion?’ Dumbledore asked. Lupin made a sound that indicated his disbelief. ‘If the answer is yes then I would have you escorted from the castle at an opportune time, but if the answer is no, then I see no reason why we would not continue with the course of action we have been taking.’ The headmaster was adamant in his opinion. ‘Miss Lockwood is an extraordinary individual and we seem to be saying that on an almost daily basis, without really understanding what it means.’

‘Albus-‘

‘I believe she has known for a long time about your condition Remus and if that is true she has kept that secret, demonstrating a huge show of loyalty to you, loyalty you know only too well is a valuable trait in anyone.’ Dumbledore stood up from behind his desk, giving a small glance towards the sorting hat. ‘My suggestion would be that you speak with her about the subject and see for yourself how remarkable she thinks you are.’

Lupin, once again, could barely believe what the Headmaster was telling him, but he wasn’t about to start an argument with him over it. Instead, Lupin left his office in a foul mood and tried to ignore the fact that one of the students held his life in her hands. Lupin decided to write to one of his best friend’s James Potter, and ask for his advice.

James,

Apologies again that I couldn’t make it down for Christmas, but with the moon so close and Harry still so young, it wouldn’t have been safe for him. 

I’m writing to ask you and Lily for your advice. I presume you’ve heard about Angelina Lockwood, she’s one of my students and in her fourth year; she is incredible. Highly intelligent and almost takes it for granted on a daily basis. Admittedly, she gets bored and gets in trouble more frequently than you did, which is saying something.

I need your help, I’m almost certain that she knows of my condition and has chosen to keep that a secret for the moment. I wonder how long it will stay like that before Dumbledore will have no choice, but to accept my resignation from the school. Please tell me what to do here.

Send my love to Lily and Harry, I may drop in during the Easter holidays if I find the time and it is safe enough.

Remus.

He folded the letter and slid it carefully into its envelope before heading off towards the owlery. It was past curfew and the corridors were empty, it was peaceful and Lupin felt at ease. Like his worries had been lifted for that short walk up the stone steps. Lupin walked in the door and saw someone talking to an owl whilst writing a letter.

‘I know it’ll be hard, but maybe it’ll help me understand better.’ It was Angelina. There was a small groan in Lupin’s chest. ‘Maybe I can help? Being animagus might be a good thing… I wonder what my animal will be. I could be an owl.’ She chuckled and continued scribbling something down. ‘I could be anything in the world… I guess I need to see what mum and dad say first.’ Angelina tied the letter to the large bird and Lupin decided to make his presence known. He kicked a small piece of wood that had broken off of one of the shelves and she whipped her head around.

‘Sorry,’ Lupin said, not really sure why he was apologising. ‘I didn’t mean to frighten you, just sending a letter.’ Lupin found his owl and attached the letter to the Potters to it. 

‘Come on Ruben.’ Angelina was at the door already and the large barn owl, hooted happily and flew to her arm. Lupin watched as she stroked his head lightly and let him fly away, he did the same and smiled at Angelina.

‘Ruben?’ He asked, curiously.

She shrugged. ‘First name that came to me, he was a present from my brother just before we got the train to Hogwarts the first time.’ She smiled remembering the day fondly. ‘I’ll miss him when he’s gone.’

‘He’s on a Quidditch team isn’t he?’

‘Falmouth Falcons.’ She nodded. ‘Guess I’ll have to go to all their big games and watch him rack up all the points.’ She chuckled.

‘You’re quite the player yourself, I’ve seen you play a few times.’ Lupin tried to forget that this was the girl that could make or break him.

‘Thanks, I’m getting better. Apparently, I’m a playmaker.’ Lupin frowned. ‘Means, I’m good at interceptions and forcing plays to happen.’ She explained.

‘I was never very good at Quidditch.’ Lupin admitted and helped her avoid the familiar icy step at the top of the stairs. ‘My friends were, one of them was on the team for all seven years he was at school, a chaser as well. Set the record your brother is close to breaking.’

‘You were friends with James Potter?!’ She exclaimed. ‘He’s the best player the tornados have had in centuries!’

‘Still am friends with him.’ Lupin smiled. ‘He’s a good person as is his wife Lily.’ 

‘My dad has met her a couple of times.’ She smiled. ‘Said she caught the attention of most of the male Healers… I don’t really know what that means.’ She frowned. Lupin chuckled slightly. ‘What?’

‘Nothing. It means that she’s pretty enough to force an entire hospital of Healers to pay attention to what she says.’ Lupin explained. Angelina stopped in her tracks. 

‘My brother gets that with girls. Can I tell him you know James Potter? He’ll be so excited.’ There was something in her asking his permission to tell someone something about him that no one else knew, that caught Lupin’s attention.

‘Of course, I’d be happy to share a few stories.’ Lupin nodded. 

‘Jocelyne can’t stop talking about Darren and I knew she fancied him from the beginning.’ Angelina thought for a moment. ‘My mum is very pretty as well.’ There was a faint sadness to her expression before she gave Lupin a tight smile and carried on walking.

‘Did I hear something about you learning to become animagus back there?’ He decided to change the subject to something she might have rather talked about. It caught her attention, but she seemed to be treading around the reasons why she wanted to learn. 

‘McGonagall says it’s a lot of hard work and takes a huge physical toll on your body.’ Lupin had walked her back to the bottom of the stairs to Gryffindor Tower.

‘Yes, I imagine it would.’ Lupin said, thoughtfully. ‘I wish you the best of luck Angelina and remember, my door is always open if you want to chat… about anything.’ He had made the decision when she was talking about becoming animagus, that he would let her come to him and answer any questions she might’ve had on the subject he really didn’t want to discuss.


	13. An Elephant?

I’d spent the weekend, training for a mid-week Quidditch match and writing up the rest of my report for Snape, I was going to hand it in Monday morning before I went to my first class of the day, I just wanted to make sure I hadn’t missed any important points in my reasoning. Jocelyne had expressed her worries about my learning how to become animagus straight from the beginning, but I’d just told her I’d be under McGonagall’s supervision the entire time, I could not have been in safer hands. 

We’d been having breakfast in the Great Hall Sunday morning when a couple of first year Ravenclaws came running over to where we were sat. 

‘Are you Angelina Lockwood?’ One of them asked, I’d just been about to take a bite of toast when he asked.

‘Erm… yes?’ I said, not very confidently.

‘We heard you made a paper dragon and sent it over to the Slytherin table a few months ago and that it was breathing fire?’ Another cut in. 

‘We wondered if you could do it again?’ The first one asked again.

I looked towards the teachers table and saw that not a single one was paying attention to what was happening. ‘Erm… I actually got in a bit of trouble last time… you’re not supposed to use fire, even if it is just a prank.’ The first years looked disappointed. ‘I guess I could do it with water though?’ I compromised.

‘Angie, no!’ Jocelyne said, firmly. ‘Did you not learn your lesson from Lupin last time?’

‘That was for wandless magic,’ I argued back. ‘Besides, I’m not stupid enough to do it in front of the teachers again. Meet us in the court yard in ten minutes.’ I said and began drinking the rest of my tea. The first years excitedly ran back to where their friends had been waiting and told them the good news.

‘This is a bad idea.’ Jocelyne said, but remained silent as the boys all asked what I was planning on doing. The honest truth was that I’d seen Darren make a show of things like this a hundred times, it couldn’t have been too hard to perform for a few first years.

We stood from the table and I risked a quick glance at the teachers table, Lupin had caught my eye and gave his usual friendly smile. A small flurry of guilt sat in my stomach and I made a mental note to use my wand only when I went outside.

‘There she is!’ The first year exclaimed. It seemed news of whatever I was about to do had spread to more than just first years and more than just Ravenclaws. What looked like a quarter of the school had come to watch me turning paper into flying objects that danced and entertained them.

Jack shoved me into the middle of the courtyard and jumped over the stone wall to give me a helping hand. ‘Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of Hogwarts.’ He announced. ‘What you are about to see is one of the greatest witches this school has ever seen, perform for you in a private showing of her skill. Angie Lockwood!’ The crowd cheered and I laughed at Jack who ran towards a log at the base of a tree that had grown in the courtyard. ‘Use this.’ He said and threw it up high into the air. 

I quickly thought about what I could do, and in some feat of inspiration threw my wand hand out to catch the log and make it spin into the shape of a mermaid, similar to the one in the prefect’s bathroom. She sat idly, waiting to be told what to do. I did a quick sweep of the courtyard and stylistically threw my wand at her, making her dance and blow water from her mouth. At some point Jack had found another log and threw it into the air, once again I caught it with my wand and turned it into a hippogriff that charged around the courtyard.

Most students were impressed and the rest just enjoyed the show Jack and I were putting on, Jack even rode the hippogriff for a while. We spent the better part of an hour performing for the crowd, before we both began to lose steam and brought it to an end. We bowed and over dramatically took the applause from the crowd.

‘We’re here all year!’ Jack threw his arms up and we gave a final bow before heading over to where Jocelyne had a surprising smile on her face. ‘And not a single teacher in sight.’ Jack said, rather cockily.

‘Actually, McGonagall and Lupin were interested for a while.’ David said, still laughing. ‘Lupin asked if you were using your wand and went away when we said yes and McGonagall just wanted to know where you found the time to practice the spells used. For the life of us, we didn’t know.’ 

‘Yeah, we just said that you kind of just know this sort of thing.’ Benji laughed as well. I’d seen Darren wandering by and gave me a thumbs up and a wink, it was the first time I realised that this time next year, he would be gone and I wouldn’t have any family left at Hogwarts. 

That week I’d had another potions class and Snape had been impressed with my report to the point that he’d let me try it out and see what happened. It was much the same and he concluded that the sleep-inducing solution must have worked because nothing exploded and the Aconite levels were enough that it should have had the same effect as the original Wolfsbane potion. Again though I’d gone into his cupboard and some of the ingredients looked untouched from the last time I’d been in there. It must have been my imagination though. The blue moon was coming up soon and Lupin would need Snape’s potion to keep under control. Something important flared in the back of my mind and I’d not been able to catch the thought in time.

McGonagall had taken me for my first lesson in becoming animagi and it was just as I thought it’d be, lots of reading and questions on what I could expect and what I should do to prepare. It wasn’t dull exactly, but I did know most of what she was saying already.

Lupin, had promised to teach us the Patronus charm after Benji had been asking about it all week. It was something I hadn’t learned yet and I was intrigued as to what would happen. He’d explained all the theory and got us all to pick a strong memory to use. It took most people a couple of tries, but I’d managed to get it right on the second attempt, using the memory of my brother giving me Ruben on the day before I went to Hogwarts.

My patronus wasn’t quite corporeal yet, but it was definitely a four-legged animal and fairly large. ‘Maybe it’s an elephant.’ I said to Jack and Jocelyne who just laughed.

‘Could be.’ Lupin said, standing next to me. ‘It looks fairly strong, but it seems you’ve not quite found the piece of you that it is attached to.’

‘What does that mean?’ David asked, still struggling with his white smoke.

‘Some people think a patronus is connected to your soul,’ I explained, still chuckling about the elephant joke. ‘It means I haven’t found my true self yet… I think we can safely say that for the first time in history, I have no idea what I’m talking about.’ Jack and Benji applauded and laughed, I gave a small bow to my friends. ‘Thank you gentlemen, thank you very much indeed.’ I sat down on the steps leading up to Lupin’s desk and watched my patronus.

Even Lupin gave a small chuckle and rested his foot on the bottom step. ‘You know, if you continue your classes with Professor McGonagall, you might find out what form your patronus will likely take. An animagus takes on the form of the animal that person most resembles and a patronus isn’t much different.’ I thought about it and was suddenly incredibly excited to find out what animal I would turn into.

 

I’d been in Herbology studying the effects of mint and how to properly take care of it, when a thought occurred to me. Professor Sprout asked if there were any questions on the task we were about to carry out and to everyone’s surprise I raised my hand.

‘Lockwood?’ It was more of a question than a firm confirmation that I was allowed to ask my question.

‘Professor, I was wondering if you knew the rate of effectiveness of mint in a healing potion?’ I asked and it took a moment for Professor Sprout to fully understand what I’d asked. 

‘It’s a steady release, the rate of release of the healing properties and various other properties is much the same no matter what.’ She answered frowning slightly. ‘Right, on we go.’

The class began tending to their mint plants, Jocelyne was actually pretty good at Herbology and I was glad I paired up with her, especially when Professor Sprout asked to speak to me about my question.

‘I was more asking if you add the mint in with the basic solution, or whatever solution you use, and then add it on the fourth or eighteenth step, would the effect be the same?’ I tried to make my point as clear as possible and luckily she understood, because she nodded and smiled.

‘Yes, mint is a curious herb, incredibly stubborn as well.’ She said, watching the students. ‘If you add it into the first step, and I’m sure you know this already, it slowly begins to release a pain relief into the potion, but if you add it into the last step, the effect is the same, it will slowly release that pain relief on consumption.’

‘So, say you put it into a healing potion?’ I went on. ‘You’d end up with something that has both a fast acting and slow release pain relief?’

Professor Sprout bobbed her head from side to side. ‘Suppose you would yes… is there something you had in mind?’

I thought for a moment. ‘Maybe, I’ll have to do some research first though.’

Sprout nodded and we continued with the class. I vaguely went through the motions of adding the mint to the Wolfsbane potion and trying to come up with every variable imaginable, lucky I had Jocelyne to do most of the work while I let my thoughts run away from me.

I’d decided to go to the library while everyone was on their way to Hogsmeade, I’d spent the better part of the month in there, only really leaving to attend Quidditch and my classes. One morning in particular I’d woken with a very clear though in my head and even skipped breakfast to go to the library to check it out. I’d been thinking hard on why there was so much lavender in the potion when the person in question is almost certainly already infected. I’d looked at a few books all of which said that it was used to prevent infection, but it didn’t seem to make much sense to have something in there that seemed to have just about no use.

I quickly finished my notes and checked the time, it was nearly lunch time and apparently I’d been so absorbed in what I’d been reading that I’d missed all of my morning classes. Right on cue, Jocelyne came rushing around the corner.

‘Angie!’ She hissed. ‘Have you been here all morning?’ I nodded, knowing I was about to get an earful from her. ‘McGonagall was furious that no one knew where you were.’ I’d just about finished packing my things away. ‘You’d better go and see her and apologise as soon as you can.’

‘I’m sorry, I just got caught up.’ I said, rather weakly and not convincing Jocelyne that I really was sorry. 

‘It’s fine, we just didn’t know where you were.’ She calmed down slightly and walked me straight to McGonagall’s office so that I could apologise. It hadn’t gone well and she had shouted quite loudly, giving me detention for the next couple of nights. I didn’t think it was that much of a big deal, until Lupin eyed me curiously as we entered the Great Hall for lunch. I pulled out the book I had been reading and tried to ignore him. ‘He looks ill again.’ Jocelyne said, I noticed that she was watching Lupin, but I still couldn’t bring my head up to look at him. ‘You should apologise to him as well. He was pretty worried and was asking if you had been swimming in the Black Lake again.’

‘Well I wasn’t, I was safe and sound in the Library.’ I didn’t mean to snap, but something just wasn’t making much sense to me and I needed to concentrate. ‘I’m sorry, Jocelyne. I’m just tired and stressed.’

She just looked at me and sat back in her seat. She didn’t speak to me for the rest of the day, I couldn’t quite understand why, I’d explained myself and apologised for snapping at her, that’s what people did and they were forgiven. I chose to ignore it until she chose to speak to me again.


	14. Guilty Modifications

It was the week before the Easter holidays and I’d been trying out my theories with the Wolfsbane potion. Snape had even offered his opinion and made a couple of suggestions, like using fresh mint as oppose to dried mint.

‘Dried mint treats mad dog bites.’ There was a small curling of his lip. ‘Fresh mint is used in very strong pain relievers and energy boosters. The effects are much the same, but fresh mint will increase the amount released as it is more susceptible to change in its surroundings.’ 

I took his advice and tried the fresh mint, the colour changed from a dark blue to a slightly lighter blue and the smell was a little stronger, but that was it. Snape took a ladle and poured a sample into a small jar as he normally did to test and see if it worked. He nodded for me to make my notes on any changes and to list the reasons for each change. 

I’d gotten into the habit of keeping all my notebooks in a case underneath my bed and referenced them on occasion when a thought caught me off guard. It was funny to see that my handwriting hadn’t changed, it was still chicken scratch and I kind of liked it like that. 

I didn’t dare miss any more of my classes with either Lupin or McGonagall that week and made sure I actually took note of what was being said in each class. That was when I noticed something that made my blood run cold. Lupin was wandering around the class asking each individual person a question on what we had learnt that term, he gave each person a question that he knew full well could answer without much trouble. He had arrived at myself and fired off a random question that I answered easily, but I still couldn’t understand it. He wasn’t tired, he wasn’t limping or breathing heavily. The full moon was the following evening, he should have been resting and sleeping.

The same thought flared up in the back of my mind, the same one when I had been in Snape’s store cupboard. He had been giving Lupin the modified Wolfsbane potion. He already told me it worked, but he wouldn’t have known the full effects until the full moon was over. I had been putting all sorts into that potion, making significant changes that could have serious effects on Lupin. I wondered if he knew I was brewing Wolfsbane, if he did then that meant he was okay with it, but if he didn’t…

‘Angie, are you alright?’ Jack said next to me. I suddenly realised that my gaze was following Lupin around the room and I was breathing pretty quickly. 

‘Yeah,’ I said, concentrating on deeper breaths. ‘Yeah, I’m fine. Just a thought.’ I hated lying to Jack, but I was in serious trouble.

I spent the holidays trying to decide what the best course of action was, did I confront Snape and reveal the fact that I knew Lupin was a werewolf? Or did I go straight to Lupin and tell him to stop drinking the potion and risk the lives of the people in the school? I could have told my dad, but I didn’t know what his reaction to a werewolf teaching his children would be. I couldn’t tell Darren, he was stressed enough with Quidditch and I couldn’t tell my friends, because I didn’t know if any of them were especially prejudice against werewolves, plus the fact that I would again reveal what I knew and put Lupin’s job and livelihood at risk. 

‘Angie, you’re looking a bit thin.’ My mother said, as she called me down for dinner the night before I would go back to Hogwarts. ‘You’ve barely eaten today. Are you feeling okay?’ My father looked up, slipping his glasses on to get a better look.

‘I’m okay, just a stomach thing, I think.’ I didn’t look up, but I knew that they’d exchanged unconvinced glances. I thought Darren was about to speak, but my father got there first.

‘Okay, well, just try and eat something and I’ll see if we can sort something out to help you sleep.’ He said and watched me attempt to eat something. I really wasn’t hungry and every time I tried to swallow a mouthful of food, I felt like it wasn’t going to stay put for long. I’d given up, leaving half a plate left. ‘That’s okay,’ Dad said, ‘as long as you’ve got something in your stomach, it’s fine. Why don’t you head up to bed and I’ll be there in a few minutes?’

I nearly jumped out of my seat, just wanting to get away from their concerned eyes. I got changed and even Ruben took some convincing to leave me be, he eventually flew out of the window to go on his night time hunt and I tried desperately not to look up at the moon; it wasn’t full, but the thought of it in general made me sick.

My father came up, carrying a mug of hot chocolate. I frowned at him. ‘I’m a Healer Angie.’ He rolled his eyes and pointed for me to get into bed. ‘I know when it’s a stomach bug, luckily your mother doesn’t.’ He winked and handed me the steaming mug. ‘Something’s bothering you and it’s worrying you immensely. Do you want to talk about it?’

I thought for a moment and sipped the hot chocolate, feeling surprisingly better for it. I shook my head; I didn’t know how to put what I was feeling into words that wouldn’t worry my father. He sighed and sat back, raking his hand through his already messy hair.

‘In that case, drink your chocolate and try to get some sleep.’ He smiled kindly. ‘You should talk to someone Angie, if it’s not me, someone. You can’t keep secrets forever, everything comes to the light eventually and you always feel better when it does. No good, starving yourself over it.’ He smiled again and kissed my forehead. ‘Good night Angie.’

I barely slept a wink that night and napped all the way back to Hogwarts. Jocelyne was noticeably worried and I kept brushing it off as a stomach bug I picked up over the holidays.

‘Well, I spent the entire time studying for our astronomy exam. I’ll never pass it.’ She whined. ‘Did you finish the homework Angie?’

‘Yeah.’ I yawned and handed her my copy. 

 

The train soon stopped and we all got back to our life at Hogwarts. I was dreading getting back into potions, I’d been avoiding Snape the same way every other student avoided him. But there was no avoiding him a month later when he asked me to stay behind at the end of class. 

‘Any more bright ideas concerning the Wolfsbane potion?’ He said, with his usual hint of disinterest.

‘No sir.’ I lied and felt myself getting a little warm. He definitely noticed I was fidgeting where I stood and I knew he wouldn’t let me leave without giving him whatever he wanted. 

‘Well then, come back at the end of the day and make another cauldron full, we’ll see if anything… comes to you.’ I nodded and swallowed hard. His glance shifted to the door ever so slightly and I could not have gotten out of there any quicker. I nearly ran all the way to Charms and both Flitwick and Jocelyne asked if I was okay. I just nodded and said I had a headache.

I spent the entire day thinking about how I could have prepared the Wolfsbane without risking Professor Lupin’s life. I decided I would just make the original potion that I’d been making before the modifications, it wasn’t fair to use anyone like a lab rat if they weren’t aware they were being experimented on. Lupin was a good man and my last class was with him before I went to see Snape. I could feel a knot of guilt tie itself tighter every time he spoke to me and it was beginning to physically hurt, what made it worse was that Lupin had kept asking me if I was okay. 

As soon as the class was dismissed, I walked out quickly shoving books into my bag as I went back to the dungeons. Snape was marking papers while he waited and had already set up the cauldron. I nodded to him and went straight to the store cupboard, the knot twisted a little in my stomach when, once again I saw that the supply of Aconite appeared untouched. I took a deep breath and gathered the ingredients needed to make the original potion, Snape stopped me almost immediately.

‘What are you doing?’ He crept around his desk to observe me.

‘I’m making the original Wolfsbane potion.’ I stuttered. ‘I don’t have any more ideas.’

Snape glared for a moment. ‘Make the modified version from last term. There’s no reason to go back when progress has been made.’ It gave me a small flurry of hope that it meant the potion had worked and Lupin felt better for it, but something still felt wrong about the whole thing. I couldn’t think of any valid reason why I should go back to the beginning and stayed silent. 

I made the modified potion and once again felt that knot of guilt tie tighter and tighter when I saw how much energy Lupin had during a full moon. It was killing me to think about the negative effects the potion could have been having and what he did and didn’t know about who was actually making it for him.

I tried to keep my mind off of it by focussing on Quidditch, but I’d been struggling to eat and sleep again and my own energy levels were low, making it difficult to keep up with the rest of the team and to stay on my broom properly. During the course of one match, I’d made my record lowest amount of interceptions and gave away more points than accumulated. Darren had already broken the record, but I wasn’t helping him win the cup.

‘It’s okay Angie, we all have an off game from time to time.’ He said, when I apologised for not doing a great job. ‘Just one more game to go and it’ll decide who wins the cup this year. Stay focused… and dad told me to make sure you eat more than you have been.’ I gave him a look. ‘What? You think I was going to let you waste away and not tell dad? It’s just stress, it’ll pass, but you’ve got to keep your body healthy while it does.’

I nodded and took my time getting changed. I was finding it hard to move with any kind of ease and the shaking didn’t help. I felt like I was losing my mind.


	15. Lupins Concern

Something was definitely bothering her, Lupin couldn’t quite work out what it was, but something was worrying her enough that she had begun to lose a noticeable amount of weight, she was quick to agitation and was lashing out more. He’d had her in for detention for using wandless magic again in class, but there was something different about it this time and instead of letting her go through the boredom again, he decided she could clean out his Grindylow tank and maybe talk to him about what was bothering her.

She arrived at his office a few minutes late, but he was certain, he could hear her outside his office before then. He gave her the instructions and let her get to work. Lupin decided that after nearly an hour of silence, it was time something was said.

‘Would you like a cup of tea?’ He said, glancing at her startled expression. ‘I think you’ve done enough for now. Cup of tea?’ He offered again.

‘Actually Professor, I have to study for my muggle studies exam… I’ve been slacking in that area.’ She barely made eye contact. ‘Am I done?’

Lupin frowned for a moment, before nodding and she almost ran out of his office. Lupin sat thinking about what could have been bothering her, before landing on the conclusion that maybe she was feeling the burden of his secret beginning to get to her; either that, or her studies were harder than she was letting on, maybe she would feel better once they were over.

It was only half an hour before Snape had delivered the Wolfsbane potion to his office. The full moon was that night and for whatever reason he wasn’t dreading it like he had been previously; the last couple of months he found were easier and there was a lot less pain than he was used to. He thought it was a coincidence in the beginning, but two good months in a row was rare.

‘Severus.’ Lupin greeted the potions master. Snape nodded and placed the goblet on the desk in front of Lupin. ‘Severus, let me ask you, you’ve been tutoring Angelina Lockwood, teaching her more complex potions, yes?’

‘Yes.’ He said, slowly.

‘Has she seemed stressed to you? Like maybe she’s worried about something?’ Lupin asked, knowing that Snape either wouldn’t care or would simply not answer, believing it to be a petty problem below him.

‘She hasn’t been as creative, which leads me to believe that something… possibly is on her mind, distracting her attention.’ It was his way of saying yes he was concerned. ‘Any other questions?’ He mocked.

‘No, thank you.’ Lupin lifted the goblet, tried not to look and finished it all in one, before handing it back to Snape. Snape glided out of his office and Lupin felt the now familiar surge of energy begin to pulse through him.


	16. Breaking Point

This was getting out of hand, people were starting to notice something was wrong. But I kept saying it was nerves about the Quidditch cup and that settled the majority of people who asked if I was okay. It wasn’t technically a lie, I was nervous about it, but the guilt over what I had done over the previous two months was starting to get to me big time. What if it wasn't just the last two months? Snape could have been giving him the Wolfsbane ever since I started making it and I would never know. I could barely breathe or stop shaking when I was around both Lupin and Snape.

McGonagall had noticed, to the point where she had put my training on hold until the exams were over as I’d made the excuse that I was just stressing over the amount of work I needed to get done for them. I was a little irritated and tried to get her to see that they were helping me focus on other things, but she had insisted that the training would stop for two weeks, during exam time.

If I could just get through this month, I would be fine. Snape had asked me to make the potion again on a Saturday afternoon, asking more and more questions about the next step and what the next logical move was to make. I insisted that with the exams getting more and more exhausting that I hadn’t put much thought into it, but he kept pushing and kept asking until I broke.

‘The next step is to make it less complex, whilst keeping all of the original components.’ I said hating myself for saying it.

‘How?’ 

‘I can reduce the heat required by removing the bat blood and replacing it with rose water and that means I can add or take away nearly any part of the potion with a more stable substitute.’ I scratched at my notes and pretended like that was all I knew. 

‘Do it.’ He snarled and I forced myself to my feet and tried desperately to think of another way to get out of there. I could have just run, but for the first time ever, I feared Snape, I feared what he was making me do and I felt like I had no choice. I made the potion and brewed it perfectly, once again he took a sample to test and I nearly broke down there and then. ‘You may go.’ He said, observing the thinner liquid. I nearly ran out of the classroom, heading straight for the Gryffindor common room. I hadn’t looked up and ran straight into Garrett, a Slytherin in my DADA class.

‘Lockwood.’ He growled, immediately whipping out his wand. ‘What’s your rush?’ He grinned and his group of friends, began laughing. ‘Stay and have a bit of fun with us.’

‘Get out of my way Garrett.’ I tried to say with as much bravery as I could muster, but it wasn’t much good, they just laughed.

Garrett brought his wand up and sent a rather weak stunner my way. I had gone straight into a suit of armour and felt my body stiffening and spasming with the force. I could hear him running over and grabbing me by my hoodie collar, forcing me to my feet. Before I knew what was happening, Garrett had flown back across the corridor and landed on the stone steps and I was furious. I ran over to him, about to finish him off when Professor Lupin appeared from inside one of the classrooms. My blood ran cold; he was the only person that could make me stop in my tracks and put that fear in me that made me want to cry and curl into a ball.

‘In my office.’ I had never heard him so angry. ‘Now.’ 

I backed away slowly from Garrett, not breaking eye contact with Lupin. Professor McGonagall had appeared as well and as I turned to head towards Lupin’s classroom, she began shouting at Garrett and his friends. Lupin was strangely quiet, I didn’t dare look back, I just headed for the classroom keeping my head down and avoiding eye contact with all other students and teachers.

I thought I heard Jocelyne calling my name, but again, I just walked away. I arrived at the classroom and nearly felt my legs give in, I really didn’t want to go up to that office, the walk was going to take away any energy I had left. 

‘Sit down.’ Lupin said through gritted teeth behind me. I just took my usual seat and waited for him to start yelling at me. Lupin sighed and walked up beside me, I kept my hands tight together in front of my mouth, trying desperately to keep calm. ‘Angelina,’ it was much softer than I was anticipating, Lupin stood facing my desk, but I didn’t dare look. ‘What is it going to take?’ He asked and I was momentarily confused. ‘How do I make you understand why this is so important? Do you even know what the consequences are of using wandless magic while your power is still settling?’ 

I wasn’t sure if this was a rhetorical question, so I just stayed silent.

‘If I give you detention, is it going to do any good? Or will it be another waste of time?’ He was furious, I could hear it in his voice. Part of me wished he would just get the shouting over and done with already, I was getting warm under my skin and beginning to lose control of my breathing again. ‘You could seriously affect the way your wand reacts to you, you could lose control over your power entirely and you could seriously hurt people. Do you have any concept of that?’

‘Yes.’ I snapped. I really didn’t mean to and I was suddenly aware that my leg was fidgeting.

‘You haven’t left me much choice.’ I looked up at Lupin and felt immensely sorry for what I had done. ‘While you have no classes to speak of, I want to keep an eye on you, so every day I will expect you to be in this classroom, studying for your exams and only use magic when I feel you are responsible enough to do so. Am I understood?’ Lupin had his hands in his pockets, but still had that air of authority. I didn’t dare cross this side of him. ‘I want you to go to your dormitory and collect anything you might need and be back in your seat in thirty minutes.’ I wasn’t sure whether I should have moved, but something told me I needed to take a walk just to keep calm. I stood up, adjusting my bag and wandering out of the classroom, when something occurred to me.

‘Do you even want to hear my side of the story?’ I asked and Lupin spun around on his heels, anger floating over his face once again. ‘Do you even want to know why I did what I did?’

‘I know why. Garrett sent a rather weak stunner your way and due to the fact that you’ve barely eaten over the last few months, you were unable to stop yourself from losing control.’ Lupin said plainly. I hated the fact that he noticed how much weight I’d lost, but I said nothing and left for Gryffindor Tower. 

‘Angie!’ Jack sprinted over to me from the courtyard. ‘What happened? We just saw Lupin just about running into the classroom after you?’

‘I used wandless magic again.’ I mumbled. ‘I’m in pretty big trouble this time. Lupin’s got me on classroom arrest for the rest of the exam period.’

‘Well, that’s not so bad.’ Jack placed a hand on my shoulder and began walking with me up to the Tower. ‘Lupin’s never harsher than he needs to be and exams are nearly over. Only three to go.’ Jack had tried to cheer me up, but it was no good, he wasn’t going to understand why I was so upset about it unless I told him the truth and there was no chance of that happening. I smiled, appreciating the effort and Jack walked me back downstairs once I’d collected the books I needed. ‘I’ll see you at dinner?’ He asked, with a weak smile.

‘Sure.’ I said, taking a deep breath and heading back into Lupin’s classroom. His office door was open and I could see him wandering around up there. I decided to just sit down and start doing some work, I’d forgotten to put my notes from potions with Snape back in my room and suddenly felt that twinge of guilt that I knew was about to build again.

I started writing up notes and trying to focus on my potions final, but the more I thought about each ingredient, the worse it got. I could feel that warmth rising in my neck again and the shaking began when I was finally settling into a rhythm. I kept glancing at Lupin, who for the most part was marking papers at his desk, but on occasion I could feel his eyes firmly on me and every time, I stilled. I felt like I couldn’t move until he stopped, when he did I just found my focus blurred and irregular.

It was like I was being suffocated slowly, like Lupin was making the room close in on me. Like any minute now I was going to be trapped inside this classroom and never be able to get out. I shut my books, with a little more aggression than I had intended. It hadn’t startled Lupin, who apparently had been watching me. He just observed me quietly.

‘Professor.’ I blurted out, I wasn’t sure where the sentence was going, but I knew I couldn’t keep it to myself any longer. That was when the door behind me swung open and the black robes of Snape came gliding through, he slowed just next to my desk before going straight up to Lupin. The longer I held it in, the more the tears began to form in the corners of my eyes. Snape placed something on his desk and they had a quiet conversation that I couldn’t hear and I really didn’t want to.

Snape eventually left and Lupin and I were very much alone again, my heart racing.

‘Something you wanted to say?’ Lupin asked and when I looked up, a goblet of steaming liquid sat on his desk, it was a full moon in a couple of night’s time and he was going through the cycle of drinking the Wolfsbane. Lupin picked up the goblet and was just about to down the whole thing when I couldn’t let it slide any longer.

‘Professor, don’t!’ I half stood. Lupin stopped and watched me. I sat back down and placed my hands back in front of my face in a closed fist, desperately trying to keep myself under control. He placed the goblet back onto the table and came to sit on the bench in front of me.

‘Angelina, is this something to do with what’s been bothering you the last few months?’ I watched his eyes, turn from hard and cold, to sympathetic and softer. 

‘I…’ Where was I supposed to begin? ‘I know something terrible and I don’t know what to do, I don’t know who to talk to about it.’

Lupin shifted uncomfortably and let me continue. 

‘I’ve known for about three months and I’m sorry I didn’t say anything before now, I just didn’t know what the consequences would be, I didn’t know if you knew or if I should have come to you and said something. I thought I could get in a lot of trouble for just knowing and then to know that it could cost someone their job or my place here.’

‘Angelina, it’s okay.’ Lupin was remarkably calm about the whole thing. ‘I understand it’s a big thing to try and wrap your head around, but I promise you it’s okay… can I ask how you found out?’ 

So Lupin knew? That came as only little relief, as he still didn’t seem to understand that I had no idea of what I was doing. I remembered back to when I’d first noticed something was wrong. ‘I guess, about six months ago I noticed that the Aconite was untouched in the store cupboard and I thought it was strange that Snape wouldn’t have made the Wolfsbane just yet, but it wasn’t until three months ago-‘

‘Wait, hold on a second.’ Lupin frowned. ‘You found out about my condition from untouched Aconite? That could mean any number of things.’

What was he talking about? ‘No professor… no offense, but I worked out you were a werewolf three months into my first year at Hogwarts. I’m talking about the modified Wolfsbane you’ve been taking.’ Lupin’s face dropped, he watched me for just a moment, before glancing at the goblet on his desk. I couldn’t tell what was going through his mind, but he was obviously thinking very hard.

‘I think we need to go and see the Headmaster.’ He said and once again, my blood ran cold. The trip up to Dumbledore’s office was pretty much a blur, at some point McGonagall had joined us and I felt like I was on death row, being escorted by two guards as I made my way towards the executioner. Lupin had brought the goblet with him and the smell was making me feel sick again.

McGonagall had gone to find Dumbledore while Lupin offered me a seat just off to the side of the Headmaster’s desk, he placed the goblet on the table and kneeled down in front of me. ‘After this, I want us to sit and talk about what’s about to happen. Angelina, you need to tell us everything you can, I promise you are not in any kind of trouble.’ I just looked at him, the same tears forming in the corners of my eyes and I couldn’t tell what he was trying to do, his face was so complex and displaying one too many things for me to keep track of. ‘Do you think you could hold down some chocolate?’ I felt like I didn’t deserve chocolate, like I should be thrown in Azkaban for what I did to the kind man in front of me. I could’ve killed him.

‘Miss Lockwood.’ Dumbledore’s voice made the tears fall, I wasn’t crying exactly, more like letting each regret and thought I’d had about the Wolfsbane Potion drop from my being and be taken away from me for good. ‘I hear you’ve been experimenting with the Wolfsbane potion?’ He asked, peering at the goblet on his desk. I didn’t know what to say.

‘Angelina.’ Lupin tried to coax me into saying something, when a thought occurred; I was crying like a fifteen-year-old girl in the middle of my Headmasters office, it was clear the potion was working, Lupin had more energy and seemed to be in a lot less pain around the full moon, to the point where he barely took any time off for it and if he did it was only for half a day. I really had done something right and now I was being persecuted for it, I wasn’t going down without a fight.

‘It’s Angie.’ I said, quietly and I thought I saw the whisper of a smile cross Lupin’s face. ‘And yes, I’ve been changing some of the ingredients and making it better. You should be thanking me.’ I said the last part much more quietly, I didn’t really mean it and I could tell Lupin knew; I wasn’t really that sort of person. Lupin sat in another chair opposite me and couldn’t help but smile, I didn’t know what it meant.

‘How long have you known about Professor Lupin’s condition?’ Dumbledore asked, still standing behind his desk.

‘I worked it out three months after I got here.’ I mumbled, I couldn’t stop the shaking.

‘Nearly four years to keep a secret like that.’ The Headmaster noted. ‘Remus, you remember what I said about loyalty?’

‘I do.’ He nodded softly. 

‘Miss Lockwood, we’ve had our suspicions that you might’ve known of Professor Lupin’s condition for a while now.’ Dumbledore continued. ‘But I don’t believe that is the reason you’ve been so distraught recently.’

I shook my head very slightly.

‘Why did you change the potion?’ Lupin asked, he had changed to a much more comfortable position with his leg thrown over the other and his chin resting on his hand, observing me.

I frowned. ‘Because it didn’t make any logical sense.’ I answered and thought about the original ingredients. ‘Half of the stuff in the original formula seemed to cancel out the other half, even at a higher heat and most of the ingredients evaporated before they could do any good. So I started finding alternatives… the potion is based on the idea that you can put the wolf to sleep whilst keeping the human awake during a transformation, that’s what I understood of it anyway. So I decided to base it on a sleep-inducing solution and skip the first five steps that would’ve evaporated anyway-‘

‘But why?’ Lupin interrupted and I looked at him still not understanding. ‘The wolfsbane potion worked and kept me in control during transformations, so why did you change that?’

‘Because there was still a lot of pain.’ I hoped that I was making it clearer. ‘The potion did nothing to stop the pain during a transformation and you would still be tired before and afterwards. That’s when I added the fresh mint, it’s used as an energy booster and a pain relief, I ground it in every two or three steps so that by the time it’s consumed, you would have a ready-made pain relief and a slow release through the night of the full moon.’

Lupin seemed slightly taken back by my admission. The room was silent for a moment while everyone thought on what had been said.

‘Professor Lupin,’ I said, quietly, he looked at me, with the same look of deep concentration that he had before I spoke. ‘I’m so sorry if I caused you any more pain.’ I was definitely crying now, the sting of guilt flooding from my eyes. ‘I didn’t know what to do, as soon as I found out, I tried to make the original potion, but Professor Snape wouldn’t let me, he just said that I shouldn’t go back to the beginning if progress had been made… but I know you two don’t get along exactly and I was worried that-‘

‘That he was trying to hurt me.’ Lupin finished the sentence for me. He sighed for a moment. ‘I don’t think you give Professor Snape enough credit. We don’t get along, you’re right about that, but he knows the consequences of not only tampering with potions that are used to subdue… people like me, but to cause something like me more pain.’ I could feel the shaking take over and the crying subside. ‘Your potion has given me two, I hope three, months of peace that I haven’t felt in a long time.’ My eyes snapped up. ‘It worked. I haven’t been in any pain and you’re quite right that I’ve not been as worn down as I was before.’

I looked to McGonagall and Dumbledore, both of whom had faint smiles on their faces.

‘Professor Snape would not have encouraged you to continue,’ Dumbledore said, ‘if he thought you were doing more harm than good. He has spoken very highly of you Angie. My only disappointment is that you let yourself worry and stress over this. You truly are extraordinary.’

‘I’ve sent an urgent owl to your father.’ McGonagall piped up. ‘He should be here shortly should you wish to speak to him.’ Panic and fear flooded me once again.

‘He doesn’t know.’ I suddenly said. Lupin frowned. ‘He doesn’t know you’re a werewolf and he doesn’t know I’ve been studying the potion.’

‘You didn’t tell your father about me?’ Lupin leaned forward in his seat. I shook my head. ‘Why not?’

‘I didn’t tell anyone.’ I shrugged.

‘Angelina, four years and you didn't tell anyone?’ He said, half smiling, half feeling sorry for me. ‘I would’ve thought you would have told someone something. Not even Jack or Jocelyne?’

‘I didn’t know how they would react. People don’t understand werewolves and think they’re dangerous, they think if you’re a werewolf, you’re a bad person.’ I suddenly felt a small weight lift off of my chest. ‘I don’t think you are a bad person, I think you’re a very good person and it’s not fair that you’re treated any differently. The human part of you is still human.’ I looked down at the floor and tried to figure out what to tell my father when he arrived. ‘I told my dad I thought someone was a werewolf at school, but that was four years ago at Christmas and he just told me to be supportive and the odd bar of chocolate wouldn’t hurt.’ I let a small smile escape and it cheered me up to think about my dad.

‘Your father is a good man.’ Dumbledore assured me. ‘I’m sure if you take this time to collect your thoughts and organise yourself so you can tell him the truth, then everything will be fine… we’ll give you peace Remus.’ And with that I was left very much alone with my Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher.

‘I did notice an improvement in your behaviour in my classes after that Christmas.’ Lupin commented. ‘Is there anything you’d like to say while we’re alone?’

I wasn’t sure, there was a million things I wanted to say, but none of it out loud to Lupin. ‘I’m not sure what’s happening.’ I admitted. Lupin brought the chair forward and tried to comfort me, he checked his watch.

‘Well, allow me to try and explain.’ He started. ‘Four years ago when you found me outside the Forbidden Forest, before the potion had been invented, I worried that you would tell the whole school what I was and that I would have to resign. I was very young and foolish and believed that my life was held in the hands of an eleven-year-old girl who hadn’t quite grasped the concept of social acceptance.’ I let a small smile escape. ‘You have grown into a truly wonderful person and I’m sorry that I ever doubted that. Now, I won’t insult your intelligence by explaining why I would like you to keep this secret, you understand well enough what people think and you demonstrated that in my class a few months ago with Garrett; but I would like to ask why you haven’t told anyone?’

‘Because it’s not a disease.’ I could feel my frustration getting the better of me. ‘It’s anatomy.’ Lupin frowned. ‘I don’t understand as much as I would like to, but as far as I understand it, it’s anatomy. It might start out as an infection, but soon that infection becomes ingrained into your physical being and it becomes a part of who you are. That’s why you should be classed as Half-breed and not Dark Creature. The human part is still human.’ I repeated. ‘People don’t seem to understand that and I don’t know why, why can’t they just use their heads and see what is standing right in front of them?’

Lupin looked sadly towards the ground. ‘Because sometimes what stands in front of them is a Dark Creature hell bent on killing or at least hurting them. You must understand this.’

‘But you don’t want to kill me?’

‘No! Merlin no, I don’t want to hurt anyone and I’ve been tremendously lucky that very few accidents have occurred.’ It was a small admission on his part. ‘But I would like to offer you something in return for the two pain-free months you have given me.’ I suddenly looked straight into his deep blue eyes. ‘I would like to answer any questions you might have about… werewolves, and help you better understand what it is you’re trying to help. It makes no logical sense for us not to work towards this together.’

We sat in the longest silence, I just contemplated what I wanted to know and say about werewolves, before Lupin interrupted my train of thought.

‘While I enjoy watching my students think very hard about what interests them, I’m afraid we don’t have much time before your father gets here and you still need to work out what you will say to him.’ Lupin said. ‘Would you like some chocolate to help you think?’ I smiled just about the biggest smile I’d had for the last three months and Lupin eventually did the same. ‘I’ll take that as a yes.’ He brought out a fresh bar and handed me a piece and as usual he was right, I felt better and I could think a little clearer.

‘Do I still need to study in your classroom for the rest of the year?’ I asked, hoping I could get away with it.

‘Oh yes!’ Lupin chuckled. ‘I’m afraid that is a different matter that I would like to discuss with your father, but we’ll see how this goes. He should be here any second now… Are you okay?’ It was at that, I realised that, yes, I was okay. I’d helped Lupin regain a piece of himself and he had thanked me for it, he even offered his help in the matter.

I was about to answer when my father walked through Dumbledore’s office door, with a worried look on his face. ‘Angie.’ He sighed. I quickly went to him and hugged him so tight I thought I might cry again. ‘Are you alright? I came as soon as I could. What’s going on?’

I pulled away and took a deep breath, just like Lupin had taught me and explained how I found out that Professor Lupin was a werewolf.

‘Okay.’ My father said and looked as if this was old news. I frowned. My father smiled and held my shoulders. ‘Angie, I told you before. Werewolves are just misunderstood people who need a little support and patience… is this what was bothering you over Easter?’

‘No.’ I admitted. ‘Dad I found out it was Professor Lupin four years ago. I found out three months ago that the Wolfsbane potion that I had been studying and experimenting with was working. Professor Snape had been giving him my modified version and he said it worked, Professor Lupin said that he wasn’t in pain anymore and that it was giving him more energy. Ask him yourself?’

My father just laughed. ‘I believe you Angie, I just can’t believe that you’ve done this. I am so proud.’ He held me tight again and I finally felt a breath of relief, at the same time I felt a little weak, feeling the effects of the last three months catch up to me. ‘You should get some chocolate in you, you still look a little pale. Will you start eating a bit more now?’

‘I hope so.’ I laughed. My father let me go and went over to Professor Lupin, holding out his hand, Lupin took it, he was a little taller than my father, but seemed to shrink when he entered his space.

‘Professor Lupin-‘

‘Remus.’ Lupin corrected him.

‘Remus.’ My father smiled. ‘Angie speaks very highly of you in her letters and of Professor Snape, she’s very proud to have a teacher like you and I hope you continue to inspire her the way you have over these last four years. Thank you.’ Lupin looked as if no one had spoken to him like that before, like an equal and it was a little upsetting to see, but soon he broke into a smile.

‘It’s a privilege to teach her, though I suspect I won’t be able to teach her much more if she continues to absorb information the way she does.’ Lupin chuckled and it made my father give him his winning smile, the same one that Darren had.

‘Well, then.’ My father turned back to me. ‘Any chance of seeing this modified potion?’ I laughed and pointed to the desk behind him. I felt my legs grow a little weak, I went back and sat in the same seat I had occupied before and watched my father inspecting the potion and answered any questions he might’ve had on the changes I’d made. ‘Did you keep notes of everything?’

‘Yes dad.’ I rolled my eyes. ‘Everything is in a case under my bed.’ I smiled and rubbed my temples, feeling a little dizzy. Lupin slid me another piece of chocolate and gave me a quick wink. I mouthed a ‘thank you’ and continued watching my father.

‘Angie, this is remarkable.’ He said finally putting the potion down. ‘I would like to speak with Professor Snape if that’s alright, just to see what he thinks about the whole thing?’

‘Of course George,’ Dumbledore nodded. ‘He should be free just now, though I think Angie could do with something to eat. Remus, would you take her to the kitchens and see that some of her strength is restored? Minerva, I trust you will ensure Severus keeps his temper in front of our guest?’

My father gave a small laugh. ‘Not a sociable man is he?’ Everyone just looked at each other and my father got the picture. ‘Well, okay, I only have a couple of questions anyway. Angie, I know I’ve said it a thousand times, but I am incredibly proud of you. This could be the start of something very special for the half-breed community. Remus, Angie could not be in safer hands, if there’s anything you ever need, please don’t hesitate to send an owl and I’ll do my best to answer as soon as I can.’

‘Actually, there is something I would like to talk to you about, if you have time after your visit with Severus?’ I felt my heart sink, I knew what it was about.

‘Well, I know that look.’ My father said looking down at me. ‘Your brother has the same look when he’s done something he knows he shouldn’t have.’ I just smiled and shrugged weakly. ‘I’ll be back and we can have a chat in your office if that’s okay?’

‘Of course.’ Lupin nodded. McGonagall led my father out of the office and he began bombarding her with questions about how the school has changed. Lupin and I were just about to do the same.

‘You’d best drink that.’ I pointed to the goblet still sitting on the table.

‘Oh yes, of course.’ He said and picked it up. ‘Has it always been that colour?’

I raised my eyebrow. ‘Did you even look at what it was you were drinking?’ Lupin just laughed and shook his head. ‘It was a dark blue, but once I got rid of the bat blood and replaced it with rose water it faded.’ I suddenly felt another pair of eyes on me and looked up to where the sorting hat was staring a hole into me. Both Dumbledore and Lupin noticed and decided it was time for me to leave. Lupin downed the potion in one and tossed the goblet up in his hand, catching it as he led me out of Dumbledore’s office and down to the kitchens. It was already dark and I wondered what time it was and how I hadn’t noticed how late it was getting.

Lupin and I settled at one of the wooden tables off to the side of the kitchen and a couple of house elves began rushing around, making my favourite, chicken with mashed potatoes and carrots. Lupin began sipping his pumpkin juice and observing me.

‘I wanted to ask you another question Angelina.’ Lupin said, just as I shoved in a mouthful of chicken. ‘How long would you have kept my secret if this hadn’t happened?’

I shrugged and swallowed the mouthful of food I had. ‘Until people stopped treating you differently I guess.’ I went back to eating, but it seemed something had made Lupin stop altogether, I frowned.

‘You know that may never happen?’

Again I swallowed. ‘Then I guess I wouldn’t have ever told anyone.’ I shrugged again. Lupin just smiled and let me continue eating, but I only managed half a plate, before I felt sick again.

‘That’s okay,’ Lupin said, nodding for one of the house elves to take it away. ‘I’d like you to have another piece of chocolate if you can though.’ I nodded and began trying to eat the chocolate. ‘Out of interest, when is that last time you finished a meal?’

I shook my head. ‘Not sure.’

Lupin just nodded and seemed satisfied. ‘Okay, well, your body might need a little more patience and time to get used to taking on more food, it’s probably why you feel sick just now. Are you ready to go? You’ll need to collect your things from my classroom while I speak to your father.’ I groaned inwardly and Lupin noticed. ‘I’m sorry, but I need you to understand that until you’ve finished growing you cannot go around using wandless magic without thought of repercussions.’

‘I understand.’ That was the truth and Lupin seemed satisfied with that. We wandered back up to his classroom and found McGonagall actually laughing with my father, it was an odd sight and even Lupin gave me a sideways glance, but said nothing.

‘Angie!’ My father greeted us. I took my usual seat and began putting away my books, noticing my notebook that contained the modified potion instructions. ‘You look better already.’ He winked and Lupin showed him to the office upstairs. 

‘You’ll be glad to hear that your father has asked that I reinstate your training.’ McGonagall said, with a hint of annoyance. ‘Though I have insisted that we wait until exams are over and you’ve had a little time to recover. We’ll set a date for your ministry exam and I’ll be expecting you to begin working towards that during the summer. You’re very close Miss Lockwood, you’ll be transforming very soon I hope.’

‘Any ideas what it’ll be?’ I asked, trying to cheer myself up.

‘One or two.’ McGonagall smiled. ‘Good luck, Professor Lupin takes your well-being very seriously, I wouldn’t take that for granted.’ It seemed like a warning, but I couldn’t help but think it had nothing to do with my use of wandless magic. McGonagall left me alone in the middle of the empty classroom and I decided to do a little work while I waited for the conclusion to Lupin’s meeting with my father. 

I woke up the next morning with the sun shining brightly in my eyes, for a while I was confused, but realised that I must’ve fallen asleep in the DADA classroom while the meeting was still happening. I stretched out and touched something soft next to me. Ruben. He was carrying a note and began nibbling at a dead mouse he’d caught.

‘That’s disgusting.’ I told him and took the note. It was from my father.

Angie,

While I am very proud of your work with the Wolfsbane Potion and believe you are on the path to something great, I am so angry that you have been using wandless magic without properly understanding what it could be doing to your power and without supervision. I will be telling your mother about it and I expect you’ll get a howler on the matter.

I had a long conversation with Professor Lupin about the Wolfsbane Potion and have decided that should you wish, I can organise for you both to come to St Mungo’s and work with our research facilities during the summer. Professor Lupin has agreed that this is your choice and has expressed his thanks for your hard work already and has asked me to reiterate that while I have no problem with him teaching you either as part of a class or in private tutoring, many people at the school will not take so kindly to him being near their children. I know you understand this and I would also ask, that while your potion works, we would both caution you against approaching the classroom during a full moon, I know that he will talk to you more about this later in the week.

Study hard and we’ll see you when the summer starts.

Love you always.

Dad

I smiled and folded the note. I looked back at Ruben who was still satisfied with his kill and hooted happily at me. I got up and dressed and made my way down for breakfast where everyone was waiting, understandably worried about what had happened the night before. I glanced at Lupin who gave me a small smile and just told them that my use of wandless magic was being taken further and that I wasn’t allowed to use magic without supervision or until Lupin believed I was responsible enough. I was still to study in his classroom over the exam period, but if I did well he’d consider letting me spend the last few days outside in the sun as long as I kept to his rules.

‘That’s tough Angie.’ David said, still trying to get through his divination book. ‘Hope Lupin isn’t too harsh on you while you’re studying.’

‘I’m sure you’ll pass everything anyway; you’ll hardly need to study.’ Benji and Jocelyne laughed. It was Jack that was giving me a strange look, like he could see straight through me and knew I wasn’t telling him something. This would be a hard couple of weeks.


	17. The Wolf In Me

Lupin had agreed to letting me practice the Patronus charm in his classroom, but insisted on me saying the words to produce it, instead of non-verbally. I agreed and began trying out different memories. The one that was strongest was the still fresh moment when I realised that Lupin wasn’t in pain anymore and that I’d actually helped him feel normal. It still wasn’t quite corporeal yet, but it was definitely a four-legged animal and it was huge.

‘Any ideas what it is?’ I asked Lupin who eyed it curiously.

‘One or two.’ He nodded. ‘But let’s see what happens once the exams are over. Are you ready for this afternoon? Muggle Studies isn’t it?’

‘Yeah, I’m no good at it though.’ I sighed.

‘Didn’t you get the highest grade last year?’

‘Yeah, but only just!’ I told him and joined him in laughing. 

‘You shouldn’t be having fun, you’re being punished, remember?’ Lupin said, still smiling.

‘I know.’ And watched as the flurry of light disappeared in front of me. I looked down at my wand and realised just how elegant it really was, maybe I was supposed to be something great.

‘Why don’t you head out for some fresh air?’ Lupin suggested. ‘A clear mind is always good before an exam.’

I smiled and debated asking him a question. ‘Professor, I’ve been getting a lot of questions from Jack about what I’ve been doing.’ Lupin stood up and took half a step towards me, wondering what it was I was about to ask. ‘I won’t tell him about you, but I want to tell him about the Wolfsbane Potion, it’s getting harder and harder to lie to him in particular and I feel like he might help me come up with some ideas for it. I just wanted to ask if I was allowed to tell him?’

‘Angelina, you don’t have to ask my permission to tell Jack anything.’ Lupin stated, softly. ‘What you do with the information you have – and this doesn’t just go for me, but any information – what you do with it is your choice and yours alone, but you are intelligent enough to recognise when it is appropriate and inappropriate to tell someone something like this. I’ll leave the choice up to you, but remind you that my door is always open if you need to talk. I only ask for one day a month to myself.’ He winked and smiled. We had gotten into the habit of doing that, never directly saying it, but always joking around the subject of his lycanthropy, it seemed to settle his fears about what I thought and it gave me confidence to keep adjusting the potion, though I hadn’t made any more progress while I’d been studying.

‘Thank you Professor.’ I said and picked up my bag to leave the classroom to find my friends.

 

I spent the last few hours of peace before my exam, hanging out with my friends by the Black Lake and laughing about the things I’d missed out on. David had checked his watch and urged us all to head back inside for the exam at some point and we began dragging our feet out of the summer sun and into the Great Hall. Admittedly I had struggled with the whole thing, I kind of knew what a ferry was, but for the life of me couldn’t work out the difference between a coach and a bus. Both seemed to be exactly the same and much like the Night Bus, but I wasn’t allowed to make too many comparisons. 

Finally, it was over and we were free to do as we pleased for an entire week before the end of the term and the end of year. Lupin had allowed me to attend training for the very last Quidditch match against Ravenclaw and if we won, I was free to do as I pleased as long as I stood by his rules. I didn’t dare say no, instead I got my body back to a healthy weight and trained hard for the game.

Jack had asked me again about what I had been up to and I decided it was time I had the support of all my friends. I brought them all out to the Lake and we sat in the evening air throwing stones into the water.

‘So, you’ve basically found the cure for being a werewolf?’ David said, throwing a small stone so it skimmed across the surface.

‘Not exactly,’ I was still writing up a few ideas for the next step in the potion’s adjustments. ‘It’s more of a sleeping draught for the wolf part and an energy booster for the human part. There’s no point in putting both to sleep, if the wolf wakes up, the human can at least do something to resist.’

‘And this is what you were stressing about the last few months?’ Jocelyne said, handing Benji another rock, I noticed that they had become very close in the last year or so.

‘Yeah, I was worried about the real world applications.’ I said, again technically not a lie.

‘Well, I for one am not surprised that while we were studying hard and practising complex spells,’ Jack threw a rock as far as he could. ‘That Angie was trying to find a werewolf cure. And I’m even less surprised to find that she is close.’ 

Everyone laughed and I felt a small twinge of sadness. I wasn’t sure there was a cure, but I wasn’t about to tell them or even Professor Lupin that, not until I knew more about the condition anyway.

Quidditch had been intense and Dumbledore had decided to hold the game in the evening so that the pitch would be lit up for the team that won the House Cup. We had a good rivalry with Ravenclaw and shook hands before the game, wishing everyone the best of luck and hoping that no one went back home with an injury.

I’d done a few laps of the pitch and got my rhythm back in the air, I flew past my friends and they cheered loudly. Both teams had decided against wearing the thick robes over the armour and we just changed the colour of our armour so that no one fainted off of their brooms half way through the match. The sun was about to disappear and the quaffle was released, all six chasers zoomed in and out of each other trying to get a hold of the quaffle, before the game began. I could see a Ravenclaw heading straight for our hoops and flew hard up the other side to cut out the play, I’d caught the Quaffle and heard our Keeper cheering me forward. 

A chaser was coming straight for me and got rid of the Quaffle and took the slight hit, spinning off, but coming back in to help Darren score another goal. The entire game I spent cutting out passes and flying in and out of bludgers and beaters, until I glanced off for just a second and missed the play coming towards me. I took a chance and stood on top of my broom, jumping and stretching out grab the ball and missing my broom as I came back down. I reached out and yelled out for my broom that came rushing towards me. I threw the quaffle to Darren who had flown by me and caught my broom in time to help with another play. The game was long and the teams were evenly matched to the end. I had seen our Seeker zooming by just ahead of Ravenclaw and if he could just keep his eye on it, he’d win us the game. Darren had thrown me the quaffle and I threw it hard at the hoop, scoring a goal. There was a small delay before the crowd cheered and I looked around to see that we had won the game. The whole team gathered together around Darren and Katie and hugged them tightly.

‘And Gryffindor wins!’ The commentator yelled loudly. I could barely hear the crowd over the cheers of the team, before I saw Darren’s face and saw that he was crying. Everyone began to separate and he held me once again and laughed.

‘Good luck Angie.’ He whispered. ‘I’ll miss this place.’ Darren pulled back and I couldn’t help but cry a little as well. We had invited the Ravenclaws to come back up and celebrate with us and we backed away from all the seventh years and applauded them. Darren and Katie shook hands with the rest of the Ravenclaw team and we all cheered their seven years’ hard work, hoping one day we’d all be there, looking back on our time with pride.

I looked over to the teacher’s stand and they were all clapping politely and watching the seventh years do their final lap of the pitch, all except Lupin who kept his smile firmly fixed on me. He was applauding my hard work throughout the year and I felt a surge of pride. I’d come a long way, but there was still further to go.

 

The end of year feast was emotional as Gryffindor had won the House Cup and life was about to change for an entire generation of witches and wizards. I looked up the table to see Darren and Katie cheering with the rest of their friends and I wondered if I’d be the same with Jack, Jocelyne, David and Benji. Maybe one day.

The summer had started the way most summers did, I spent the first couple of days relaxing in the sun and occasionally wandering up Diagon Alley towards Flourish and Blotts. But soon after I was going into St Mungo’s to work on my potion with my dad and Professor Lupin who had managed to get away from Hogwarts for a couple of weeks. I had brought my case of notebooks home and we began sorting through them and trying to figure out where everything started and ended and which order it all went in.

Jack had offered to help and we gladly accepted. It was tough going and most of it was eligible.

‘Remind me to start teaching you to write clearly.’ Lupin would joke when he asked what a word was.

‘Okay, I know I’ve asked this before.’ Jack said, closing one of the notebooks. ‘But I’m asking again, are you sure that all of this is relevant? It was two, three years ago some of this stuff was written.’

‘I don’t know.’ I laughed. ‘I’m just trying to figure out where I started and why I started there.’

Eventually, after three days straight of reading through notebooks and Jack labelling them carefully, it was done. Everything I had ever written on the modified Wolfsbane potion, everything I knew about werewolves and every question I had was written out again and Lupin promised he would try to answer as many as he could, but even he didn’t quite know everything.

‘It’s not something people really bother with.’ There was always a hint of sadness to his voice when he spoke of his condition and the reaction most people had to it. I’d noticed as well that while Jack and I wore jeans and t shirts, Lupin always showed up with his green-grey suit jacket and dark blue shirt underneath, he looked fairly smart and we couldn’t work out why he felt the need to look like that. 

We left the hospital late one night and I’d told Jack he could stay at our house that night, instead of making the trip home so late. That’s when he asked me the question that I was taking for granted. ‘Angie?’ I had been getting into bed and just about to settle. ‘Can I ask you something?’

‘Sure.’ I looked over at his silhouette in the darkness. We had put another bed in my already fairly spacious room for him to sleep on. 

‘Is Professor Lupin a werewolf?’

I froze. I didn’t know how to answer that question, but from his movements, I guessed my silence already answered the question for him. ‘How did you work it out?’ I asked.

I heard Jack sigh. ‘I worked it out yesterday when he was talking about some of the accidents that can happen. I wondered how he knew so much and remembered that he was ill quite a lot, usually once a month, that was up until about four months ago when you said you’d made the modified version of the potion… he is, isn’t he?’

‘Yeah. But like I keep saying, he’s half wolf, half human. The human part is still human and that’s the part we all see.’ I told him and I watched his head turn towards me.

‘He’s a good man Angie, I’d never tell anyone, you know that.’ Jack promised. ‘I just wonder what would have happened if your potion hadn’t worked.’

‘That’s what I spent three months worrying about.’ I admitted. ‘You should tell him that you know. He seems to brighten up when people know and don’t really care.’

‘I don’t care. He’s the best teacher I’ve ever had.’ I could hear the tiredness in Jack’s voice and decided to let us both sleep.

Jack told Lupin the next day that he knew and for a brief moment I saw a flicker of fear pass through Lupin’s expression, before it settled into relief that Jack didn’t care what the other half of him was. Lupin had loosened up a little after that and began answering my questions that I had and it ended up more like a class than was intended. Lupin would stand in front of the work benches and read through each question trying to explain as fully as he could.

‘How long does the initial wound take to heal?’ Lupin read. ‘Erm… it really depends on the severity. I’m not sure how long mine remained the way they were, probably healed over in a matter of weeks. But I’ve seen severe bites last the full month before the transformation and the wolf has done further damage.’ He rubbed his chin slightly thinking on something. ‘Maybe… I should tell you how I…’

‘You don’t have to.’ Jack said, sympathetically. I didn’t quite understand, if Lupin thought he could help by sharing his experiences then I believed he should have said it. But Jack knew more about the way people thought and I trusted his judgement. ‘If it makes you uncomfortable, we don’t need to talk about it, sir.’

Lupin chuckled to himself and smiled. ‘Thank you, Jack. I appreciate it, but if it makes anything clearer, Angelina, maybe I should share my experience?’

I just looked between the two of them, unsure of who to side with. ‘Erm… I’m finding this difficult to judge… I think this is Jack’s area of expertise.’ I smiled weakly and Lupin just nodded.

‘Very well.’ There was almost an air of relief and I hoped I’d made the right choice. ‘The next question is about the timeline of each cycle. “When are the effects of the coming moon felt and how are these expressed?” Well, mostly you feel worn down, like you’ve not slept in days.’ Lupin explained and I began jotting more notes down. ‘Then you start to feel a bit warmer as your body prepares itself to change. Your mind starts to slow down and focus and concentration start to fade, then the day of the moon, all you want to do is sleep and not do anything.’ I suddenly felt like this was a personal matter that Lupin was revealing a lot of himself all at once.

‘Professor?’ I went to put my hand up out of habit and stopped myself. ‘Is this personal?... I mean, is this making you uncomfortable to talk about this kind of thing? I’m not a good judge of when people are uncomfortable.’ Jack just giggled next to me.

‘Angelina,’ Lupin couldn’t hide his smile either. ‘This entire event is extremely personal to me. I’m telling you things that I’ve told no one else, but I trust the both of you and you’re both intelligent enough to know what to do with the information. Yes, I’m revealing very personal experiences, but if any of this helps other… people like me, then I’ll tell you everything you want to know.’

I frowned and wondered if this was one of those times where I should have stopped the questioning, but neither Jack nor Lupin seemed to feel the same way so I just nodded and Lupin continued.

‘The day before the full moon is usually the day when one would find somewhere to ride it out, as it’s the last day you would have enough energy that you feel you can actually move without too much difficulty.’ Lupin stood and paced the same way he would when teaching a class. ‘Does that answer the question?’

‘Is it a gradual progression?’ I clarified.

‘Yes, much like depriving yourself of sleep and then having it all catch up to you.’ Lupin nodded. I made a couple of notes. 

‘Is it just fatigue? Or is there pain as well? Before the night of the full moon I mean?’ I could see Lupin getting gradually more and more uncomfortable as the questioning continued.

‘Mostly just fatigue during the few days before, the pain starts on the day of.’ Lupin rubbed his chin again. ‘It’s a lot like getting very old in the space of three or four days before…’ Both Jack and I knew where the end of the sentence was going. We exchanged quick glances.

‘It’s fine, we can move on.’ I said, Jack gave me a small nod in approval. ‘What’s next on the list?’

Lupin looked a little grateful for the save and I realised just how difficult this had been for him to admit his secrets to two fifteen-year-old kids. We continued at his pace for a while and he told us the little history that was known about werewolves, including where they originated from and some of the things believed about them. It took another week before all of my questions were answered as fully as possible, with the exception of hearing about Lupin’s own personal experiences of becoming a werewolf.

The full moon was approaching and I had shown Lupin how to make the modified Wolfsbane potion, he seemed to have a better grasp on it than the previous one. I had shown my father how to make it as well and he had asked me a few questions about the necessity of certain ingredients now that it was changed to accommodate for the lacking of certain things, before he had to tend to a group of patients. 

I had gone about trying to answer his questions and found that if I had made the rose water by hand and added the Aconite to the mix at that stage, it would mean I could alter the strength of the potion, meaning it would only have to be consumed on the day of the full moon and, as Lupin had joked about the taste every so often, add sugar.

‘Are you sure it will work?’ Lupin asked, when I told him just before he drank the previously modified potion.

‘Well, there’s really only one way to find out.’ I admitted. ‘But drinking hot, fresh mint water will keep your energy up and pain-free during the three or four days prior to the moon, meaning you can live normally and then take the potion just the once. I’ll make the modified version this time and it’ll give us an entire month to make a decision and research the new formula.’

Lupin downed the goblet and sighed. ‘You’re taking a big risk.’ He said and even Jack looked away. ‘But you’re right, we have a month to see if it will work and then we will need to look at finding others who are prepared to take a chance on this. It’s no good using just one test subject, you may as well have a large group to back up your theories.’

‘Are we likely to find anyone?’ Jack asked, observing the modified Wolfsbane.

Lupin looked away for the briefest moment. ‘I’m sure I can find a handful of volunteers.’ Lupin stood from the stool he was perched on. ‘For now, I think I need to get back to the castle and give everyone a quick update on your progress. I have a feeling Severus will want to come and inspect the potion himself at some point and Dumbledore will no doubt have a few questions for me. I’ll be back tomorrow for another dose and I expect to hear that you’ve been studying for your ministry exam…’ I gave a look that said I’d nearly forgotten about it. ‘Angelina, the exam is only a few days away. It’ll be hard to convince them to give you another date so soon if you fail this one. I want you both to leave at a reasonable time, you’ve done a lot of work today already.’ With that, Lupin left the research lab and Jack and I just smiled at each other. 

We eventually did leave and my mother had helped me practice for my exam, she said that I was very close and just a little more concentration and I’d get there. McGonagall had sent a letter to wish me luck for the exam and that she looked forward to seeing what I’d turn into. I remembered her saying that once I’d done it once, the rest would get easier, I just had to push through that first transformation.

 

It wasn’t easy and the day of both the exam and the full moon, I changed. Just the once, in my bedroom in front of the mirror and it felt so good. I stared at the animal I’d become for a moment or two, before making a noise like a laugh. I stretched and wandered around in my new form, before changing back and running downstairs to see my parents before they left for work. I told them the good news and both they and Darren, who was about to head off for Quidditch training, hugged me tightly and we all rushed out of the house. My mother hurried us off to the ministry where I hadn’t really been, it was busy and I stayed as close as I could to her at all times. 

We got to her office and I met a few other Aurors she worked with. One was an interesting man who wore a lot of purple. I had gotten to talking to him about Grindylows and about the ones I’d seen in the Lake at Hogwarts.

‘Anna, your daughter is a smart girl.’ Kingsley chuckled as he stood to leave the office. ‘I have to go just now, but good luck for your exam and you’ll have to show us your animal when you pass.’ He winked at me and left the office. My mother just smiled at me and let me read while I waited for my exam time to come up.

I had hoped to write an owl to Professor Lupin and Professor McGonagall once my exam was over, regardless of the result and I’d hoped that I would make them proud. 

‘Angie.’ My mother, brought me out of my book. ‘It’s time.’ She said and for the first time, I could see that she was nervous for me. We walked down to the Animagus Registry and I gave my wand as identification.

‘Angelina Glamora Lockwood.’ The woman behind the desk said, she handed back my wand. ‘Please take a seat, we’ll be with you a few minutes.’ I sat in the waiting room alone as my mother had been called back to the office. It was silent and I could feel boredom creeping in.

Finally, a short stumpy man exited the room behind the reception desk and eyed me curiously. ‘Come on, let’s get this done.’ His voice was croaky and a little high-pitched. I followed him into a room filled with people, all talking loudly and laughing at one thing or another. The short man took a seat in front of me and called silence over the room. All eyes were on me. ‘Angelina Glamora Lockwood, you have been called here today to take the Animagus Registry Exam. Now, we don’t want to worry you, there is no fail mark, there’s actually no mark. You have either learned the ability or you have not. Does this make sense?’

I nodded.

‘Now, seeing as we can hardly expect a fifteen-year-old child to have completed the training, I assume this will not take much time at all.’ There was a flicker of anger inside me. Why would he think I hadn’t put the work in? Why would he doubt my abilities? ‘On you go.’

I took a deep breath and remembered what I had been taught, keep a clear mind, trust your instincts and simply transform. I opened my eyes to see a room full of people with their mouths hanging open and I knew I had done it. The short man cleared his throat and I sat back on my hind legs, letting him examine my markings that identified me as an animagus. ‘Right, yes.’ He said, his cheeks flushing red slightly. ‘Well okay, we have a… a rather large wolf with dark fur covering her back and the top of her head, white covering the rest of the body and some scarring on the back leg.’ I glanced over and saw the scarring from where I had been bitten by the lionfish. ‘You may change back.’ He said and I did, finding that change a little easier.

I spent the better part of an hour being asked questions and being asked to transform a few more times, just to be sure it wasn’t a fluke and soon I was a registered animagus. I rushed back up to my mother’s office and showed her my certificate, she had hugged me and came close to crying. Kingsley Shacklebolt had returned at some point and given me a death hug, asking me to show him my animal form. I took a breath and showed the whole office, everyone suddenly taking an interest and congratulating me on passing.

I began writing letters to Lupin and McGonagall and just before we went back home, my mother sent them through the Floo Network and told me that they would get them within seconds. We had finally gotten home and I showed my father my form, before setting off for Darren’s first game for the Falmouth Falcons.

I’d watched him zoom in and out of players and bludgers and score a few points, he looked so cool in the air and like nothing fazed him. He was a natural. They had lost the game, only by twenty points, but Darren was still in good spirits, he was proud of his performance and I hugged him straight away after the game.

‘Angie.’ He said, still smiling. ‘How did your exam go? You passed right?’

‘Yeah, I did. Registered animagus.’ I bowed and laughed with my brother. ‘How does it feel to be a professional Quidditch player?’

‘Feels pretty good, so much more intense that Hogwarts though.’ We had been about to leave the club house when an unexpected face appeared.

‘Darren Lockwood.’ James Potter said and extended his hand to shake. Both Darren’s and my mouth dropped open. Darren eventually found the sense to take his hand and shake it. ‘I just watched your game. How long have you been playing?’

‘Erm… just my six years at school.’ Darren stumbled over a few of his words. ‘This was my first game for the Falcons.’

He seemed genuinely surprised by this. ‘Really? Well, you look like a natural. I look forward to playing you this season.’ 

‘Yeah, yeah, should be good.’ Darren seemed to regain some of his sense. James had held out his hand for both my parents to shake, before his gaze landed on me.

‘Well, well, you must be Angelina Lockwood.’ James said and his eyes burnt holes into me. It was a little intimidating. I just nodded. ‘Remus has told me a great deal about you, do you mind if we have a quick word? I feel I won’t get this opportunity again so soon.’ I just swallowed and nodded again. James took us to a small corner of the club house and I watched him move with ease, as if he was in an entirely natural setting. ‘Yes, this will be fine.’ He said, settling on an abandoned office. ‘I just wanted to congratulate you firstly on passing your Animagus Registry Exam, and secondly on your work in the werewolf field.’ I frowned momentarily, wondering how he could have known about my being animagus so quickly, but I didn’t have much time to think about it, because James Potter had wrapped his arms around me and sighed. ‘Thank you. Thank you for giving Remus a few months of peace.’

‘Erm, your welcome.’ I said, thinking on how strange this whole situation was. He finally let go and smiled down at me through his glasses.

‘Remus sent me a message earlier today and said I should come down here to watch your brother play.’ James explained. ‘He’s very talented and if he’s broken my record at Hogwarts, I’m in for a big challenge this season.’ He chuckled slightly. ‘But the real reason I’m here is to make sure you understand how much you have helped Remus these last few months. He was always scared to come around during the holidays in case it was near a full moon and he did something he would hate himself for. We have a young boy, Harry and Remus loves him, but he knows he can be dangerous. He told me how special you are and that you’ve made so much progress over the last month that he was looking to visit tomorrow. Any other month he’d tell me to give him a few days before attempting to leave the house.’ I laughed a little and knew what he was talking about. ‘Anyway, I just wanted to thank you, you have no idea how happy he is, I hope it stays that way. He’s the best man I know and he deserves a life better than what he has.’

‘Well, I’m not there yet, but I’ll try and give him what he deserves.’ I shakily told the famous chaser. 

‘It’s all I ask and if you need anything, you only have to ask.’ James smiled the famous smile I’d seen in all the posters. ‘I’ll let Remus know I’ve met you and that I agree with his initial opinion.’ He gave me a quick wink and before I could ask what that meant, we left the office and returned to where my parents and Darren were talking. James had begun talking Quidditch to Darren and I couldn’t stop smiling. It had been a very good day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Most of the stuff about the Wolfsbane potion is from my own creation and stuff that I've looked up in the Harry Potter wiki site. So if I've made any mistakes it's all from reading that! Don't forget to leave comments and let me know if you're enjoying the story so far.


	18. There's Hope Angelina

I had shown Jack my animagus and he was impressed to say the least, he kept asking to see it and after a while I got tired and laughed at him when he apologised with a look like a lost puppy. 

Lupin arrived back a couple of days after the full moon, by which time two people had been admitted into St Mungo’s with werewolf bites. My father had refused me access to see them as they were still unconscious.

‘I don’t want you in there alone with freshly bitten werewolves, we don’t know how they will react when they wake.’ He insisted and went to walk out of our research lab.

‘Then let me take Professor Lupin with me.’ I said, exhausted, stopping him from leaving. ‘Dad, please, if there’s one thing I’ve learnt from all of this is that werewolves need people around them who won’t turn away when they need help. I didn’t leave when I found out about Lupin, because you taught me that the man he was, wasn’t dangerous, just misunderstood. There are two people in there who are human, they are real people with real fears and real lives that they have built for themselves before they were bitten. Please let me help them keep that.’

I could see something happening that I didn’t quite understand, I hoped it was a good thing. He sighed and turned to Lupin. ‘What do you think Remus?’ He asked.

I turned to Lupin, pleading with my eyes to agree with me, but it seemed I didn’t need to. ‘George, we don’t know enough about the immediate effects the infection has. This could be a very good opportunity for Angelina’s research… however, if you still don’t want her to see them, then I understand your concerns and I will not interfere, but I would like to see them. It can be a very confusing time to say the least and they will need someone who can explain what’s happening to them.’

My father nodded and looked back at me. ‘I’ll let you know when they’re awake, but I don’t want you to speak to them until Professor Lupin has said it’s okay. I know what you’re like when you’re excited about something and I don’t want them anymore upset than they already will be.’

I smiled and hugged my dad who couldn’t help, but let out a small chuckle. He went back to seeing his patients and Lupin and I were left alone to work.

‘So, how did it go?’ I asked, opening up my notebook and scanning through the notes I’d made to start the new modifications.

‘You mean how did the full moon go?’ Lupin asked, with a small smile and his eyebrow raised. I smiled and nodded. ‘It was fine. Pain-free and I was fairly lucid. I mostly slept.’

‘I’m glad.’ I said, starting work on making the rose water with the Aconite. ‘Can you start on the mint please?’

‘Sure.’ Lupin took his jacket off and rolled up the sleeves of his dark blue shirt, I noticed a few scars on his arms and stared for just a moment before he caught me. ‘The result of my inexperience with the condition.’ He said simply. ‘It’s common to find werewolves with more scars than this, like I said, I’ve been incredibly lucky.’

‘It doesn’t look like it.’ I mumbled and continued working.

Lupin chuckled. ‘Trust me, I’ve had my bad months, but comparatively speaking, these are minor.’ I wanted to ask the obvious question, but something told me I shouldn’t have. ‘So, James tells me your brother played very well in his first game? I’m sorry I missed it.’

‘It’s okay.’ I shook my head. ‘Darren did well, lost by twenty points and I think he got something like eighty points for the team. We were all fairly impressed to be honest… James seems like a good person; he cares a lot about you.’

Lupin laughed a little and nodded. ‘Yeah, we’ve been friends for a very long time. I know his wife Lily very well as well, they are very special people and their son will probably be the same.’

‘Professor, can I ask you something?’ I suddenly said, there was something on my mind since my chat with James Potter. Lupin nodded. ‘He said that he agreed with your initial opinion of me. Can I ask what that opinion was?’

Lupin just took a breath and thought. ‘Erm… well, I thought that you were an extraordinarily intelligent person with a lot of potential to do anything you want. You are a very special person Angelina and I am privileged to know you.’

I got the impression that there was something more Lupin wanted to say, but he didn’t, instead he just went back to crushing the mint leaves and making notes of everything he did. We worked for another few hours before my father came back with good news.

‘They’re awake.’ He said, his voice was quiet. ‘Remus, they’re beginning to panic and I’m not sure what else we can do for them.’ Lupin nodded and got up immediately, he slipped on his jacket and took a deep breath, gesturing for me to go with him.

My father took us to their room and stopped us just outside. ‘Remus, I expect you’ll not be as fazed by this as Angie, but let me remind the both of you how scared they are to not only be here, but to wake up and to have had the experiences they have had… The woman’s name is Doris and the man is Julian, they were found by their neighbour who has said their son was nowhere to be found, the Aurors are doing their best to find the boy, but we’re not so sure they’ll get anywhere with the search. Angie, please let Remus take the lead on this one and do as he tells you.’ I nodded, slightly horrified as the gravity of my research began to feel a little heavy. ‘I’ll be back in about twenty minutes, if you need anything there are Healers everywhere who can help you.’

He walked away and Lupin gave me a moment to gather my thoughts. 

‘Angelina.’ He said. ‘I need you to understand that they are in a lot of pain right now and that some of the things you will hear these people say will seem terrifying, but I’ll be right beside you the entire time. You don’t need to worry; they won’t hurt you while I’m there… I just need you to know that depending on their progression, they might try.’

‘Why?’ I asked, frowning slightly.

‘It’s not clear, but I do know that werewolves react better to their own kind and with you-‘ He suddenly stopped talking. ‘I just know that they will find it difficult to keep themselves under control around you… are you ready?’

I nodded and wondered what Lupin was about to say. I didn’t want to press the matter, not while we were so close to freshly bitten werewolves and the potential to understand more about the condition than ever before. We entered the clean, white ward and Doris, a woman in her mid-thirties with light brown hair and Julian, also mid-thirties and balding slightly, lay staring at the ceiling. Lupin gestured for me to take a seat close to the door and to simply listen for a while.

I could hear slight sobs as Lupin introduced himself, Doris began crying and begged for him to tell her that they had a cure. Julian simply sat and stared at Lupin, his eyes were dark and it looked like any second he would lash out at Lupin. Doris, just cried and begged and I suddenly felt immensely sorry for them.

‘Can I ask how it happened?’ Lupin sat in between their beds and I watched his back from the door.

‘Our son,’ Doris croaked, ‘We live near a forest, just forgot it was a full moon, we saw him running for us.’ She couldn’t go on and Lupin held her hand to keep her calm.

‘It’s okay.’ Lupin said and pulled out a small bar of chocolate, I smiled a little wondering how often he kept a bar on him. ‘Here, it’ll help.’ He handed Doris a small piece, before breaking off another piece for Julian. ‘Do you know who it was?’

‘No.’ Julian said, his voice just as worn and tired. ‘He was so angry, in so much pain.’ Julian began showing how upset he truly was. ‘Why didn’t he just kill us?’

‘It’s not clear why werewolves, when transformed, do anything.’ Lupin sighed. ‘But I’d like to introduce someone who can help. She is the daughter of one of the Healers here and has been researching Lycanthropy, she has made significant progress in this field and could be the answer we’ve been looking for… I just ask one thing.’ I could see Lupin struggling slightly. ‘You might have a strange reaction to her, but I ask that if you think for a single second that you might do something you will regret, that you say something and I’ll make sure she is taken away… would you like to meet her?’

‘Sure.’ Doris said, still sniffing slightly. Neither of the two people seemed to understand what was so special about me and in fairness I didn’t know either. 

Lupin stood and came over to where I was sitting. He kneeled in front of me. ‘Angelina, I will be right behind you the entire time. I won’t leave your side, not for any reason. But I will stop you if it’s too much for them. Do you understand?’ I nodded and Lupin handed me a square piece of chocolate, I just smiled and ate it. ‘Come on.’ Lupin stood and gestured for me to sit in the seat he had previously occupied. ‘This is Angelina Lockwood.’ Lupin said and stood behind my seat.

I could see Julian showing great interest already. ‘Lockwood?’ He asked. ‘George’s daughter?’ I nodded. I could just about see through the sheets that he had been bitten on his side and possibly around his back as he struggled to sit. 

‘George has been helping us feel calmer about everything.’ Doris began sitting as well and I could see the bandages over her leg where she had been bitten. ‘He seems like a good man; I imagine you can’t be much different.’ 

‘I hope I’m becoming a good person at least.’ I smiled and it was as if they were hanging on my every word. I looked up at Lupin who had a strange look of contemplation on his face. ‘I actually wanted to ask you a couple of questions, if you feel up to it?’

‘Of course, fire away.’ Julian smiled and I felt my eyebrow twitch into a small frown.

‘I guess my first question is: are you in any pain right now?’ I suddenly felt a little nervous and I could feel Lupin edging inches closer to my seat.

‘My leg feels like it’s on fire right now, I’m tired…’ Doris explained, mentally checking all of her body parts. Julian did the same.

‘Yeah, the bite feels like I’m being burnt all around my back.’ Julian agreed. 

‘Okay, well I think I have something for that. I’ll see if my dad will let me give it to you.’ I said, again looking up at Lupin whose face had settled somewhat. ‘I also wanted to ask what you know of the Wolfsbane Potion?’

Both Julian and Doris shook their heads, barely even having heard of the potion.

‘Okay, well, let me explain.’ I started and leaned forward slightly. ‘The potion is highly complex and most of the ingredients are outrageously expensive; I’ve been developing a new potion, based on the same idea that you can put the wolf to sleep during a full moon and keep the human awake. The original potion worked and any werewolf in a position to take it, found that they could keep themselves in control during a transformation, however, it didn’t take into account the amount of pain and fatigue experienced. My new potion, does.’

‘That sounds good.’ Doris said, still unsure of where I was going with my line of explanation. 

‘The new formula is much less complicated and the ingredients can be grown in your back garden for the most part.’ I went on and felt Lupin shift behind me. ‘The only problem is that I’ve had a significant lack of werewolves to help me prove that this is better than the original potion.’

‘So you want to use us as test subjects?’ Julian had taken a small turn.

‘No, I want you to get your lives back.’ I told him with a little more force than I intended, Lupin put his hand on my shoulder to keep me from going any further. ‘The magical community think that you are a Dark Creature and the ministry will try to prevent you from living normal lives. I want to prove that you’re not Dark Creatures, you’re Half-breeds and that is a very different thing.’

‘Alright.’ Lupin said softly. ‘Why don’t we give you time to think about the offer and just let George know if you’d like to give us your consent.’ Lupin was pulling me up gently and taking me out of the room, I felt frustrated with him. 

I sighed outside their room and Lupin just paced around a little.

‘They’re good people.’ I said, more to myself than anything. ‘They’re just scared.’

Lupin stopped in his tracks, he gave a small laugh, before holding me tight. It was a strange feeling, I didn’t think I’d ever been that close to Lupin before, but somehow it felt okay, I put my arms around him as well and just stood waiting for him to let go. He finally did and I could see small tears forming in the corners of his eyes.

‘Oh Angelina.’ He said, smiling to himself. ‘You really are something.’ I frowned at him. ‘Those people in there are terrified for their lives, they have become most people’s worst fears and you talked to them like it was old news and it was time to take the next step towards rebuilding their lives… I don’t expect that has happened to many of us and I am very proud of you right now.’

I just laughed and felt a little warm. ‘They’re people, just like me.’ I shrugged. ‘Someone has to tell them the world didn’t end, it got harder, but it didn’t end.’

Lupin just chuckled and nodded. ‘Come on. They need to rest and you’ve got work to do.’

He led me back up to our research lab and we continued to work for the next couple of weeks, Doris and Julian had been allowed to leave a few days after I’d seen them and sent an owl the week before the full moon to say they were giving us their consent to try the new formula.

I rushed into the lab and both Jack and Lupin had been talking about something when I showed them the letter.

‘That’s fantastic news!’ Lupin said and read through the note, Jack just hugged me and sighed.

‘So, we’re really doing this?’ Jack asked.

‘Yeah, I guess we are.’ I thought for a moment. ‘Scary, right?’ Jack and I laughed, but when I turned to Lupin we stopped. His face was almost horrified. ‘What’s wrong?’

‘Did you read the rest of the letter?’ He asked, that same hint of anger that I’d heard before this whole thing began, creeping into his voice. ‘Did you read why they are saying yes?’ I shook my head.

‘I only just opened it.’ I admitted.

‘The Aurors found the remains of their son. They say they have nothing left to lose, their house is being inspected by the ministry and they have both lost their jobs.’ Lupin nearly broke down there and then. ‘St Mungo’s is offering them two rooms in the lower floors where some werewolves choose to change for their first cycle and they’ve accepted.’ Jack and I just looked at each other, I could tell that his blood had gone cold as well. 

We all just stood in silence, reading over the letter over and over again. ‘Angelina.’ Lupin said softly, something about him begged me. ‘Your research has never been so important. You have a great opportunity to prove that this potion works and that werewolves are not any different to any other Half-breed creature. Please help them.’ I’d never seen Lupin beg before and I wasn’t sure I was entirely comfortable with it, but I wanted to help.

‘Maybe you should write back.’ I told him. ‘You have more experience than me in this area…. We know the mint water works because you haven’t felt tired yet right?’ Lupin nodded. ‘Okay, I’m going to talk to my dad, it’ll be better if we can keep an eye on them for a few days, just to see if it’s working properly.’

Jack and I had talked about adding silver to the mint water, just to give it an extra boost in dulling the infection over the course of the three or four days prior to the full moon. Lupin had also agreed to take residence in one of the rooms in the lower floors, just to be on the safe side. 

Lupin had managed to find three other werewolves that wanted to try out the new potion and I briefly wondered if they were all people from Lupin’s past or if they were just people he found out of nowhere. Soon we had attracted the attention of the Daily Prophet, who had sent a journalist to talk to us about what we were attempting. Jack had done most of the talking and told him we had five willing volunteers who all were at different stages of Lycanthropy, two freshly bitten, two within ten years and one more than ten years. In fairness to Jack he had done an excellent job of explaining how the potion worked and what we had changed about it, the one thing he neglected to mention was Lupin. 

‘A lot of people are still scared of people like me.’ Lupin explained, when I asked. ‘Jack and I decided it would be best that while I am still a teacher at Hogwarts, my condition stay out of the limelight, not everyone will be happy to have a werewolf teaching their children.’ I hadn’t really thought about it, but he was right. I knew hardly anything about trying to change people’s opinion of werewolves and mostly left it to Jack to deal with.

The first day we were going to begin the trial, I had gotten owls from Benji, Jocelyne and David, all of whom said they were a little upset that I hadn’t asked for their help, but that they wished me luck anyway. I knew that they would ask about it on the first day of the new school year that was just over a week away, but I was too excited to worry about what they would say. 

I went with my father into work and Jack had been talking to a man I didn’t recognise, he was overweight and looked purple in the face, he didn’t look that old, but like his success had gotten the better of him; Jack looked a little annoyed with the man and I suddenly felt like I wanted to shrink away.

‘Lockwood.’ The man snapped and both my father and I looked at him. He waddled over to us and looked from my father to me a few times. ‘You’ve been tampering with my potion?’ He snapped at my father, who just smiled a little.

‘No, but my fifteen-year-old daughter has been making a few improvements.’ I couldn’t help but let a smile go. ‘Excuse me, it’s a very big day and I’m sure she has a lot of work to get done to prepare for it.’ He guided me away from Damocles and Jack just looked impressed with my father’s comment. ‘Go.’ He said quietly and immediately Damocles began firing a hundred questions at my father, none of which he was going to answer. Jack and I scurried away to the lab to find Lupin, following the instructions to make the Silvermint water.

I gave him a small frown.

‘I figured I may as well at least try to make it myself.’ He explained and I watched him grind up the leaves. ‘There’s no point in making the potion any less complex if you’re still going to do all the work.’ I just sat back and watched him take his time over making the water. Jack had been reading through the Daily Prophet and showed me the article that actually put the research in a pretty good light. ‘Read it?’ Lupin asked as he began stirring and counting as he did.

‘Miss Angie Lockwood – I see they got your name right – and spokesperson Mr Jack Rathborne – thank you very much – have been studying the effects of the Wolfsbane Potion and making significant changes to the complexity it. According to Rathborne, the effects are much the same, putting the dangerous half of the werewolf to sleep once a month and allowing the human to remain in control whilst the transformation occurs, however, the potion now incorporates a secondary factor not noticed by Damocles (the original maker of the Wolfsbane Potion). Rathborne explains that Lockwood recognised that the original remedy did not take into account the significant pain that happens during a transformation and the fatigue leading up to it. “She’s made it more tolerable,” Rathborne says with a hint of pride, “it’ll be interesting and exciting to see what the results of the trail will be.” It is no doubt clear that this fifteen-year-old student of Hogwarts has a very bright future ahead of her and here at the Prophet, we are all excited to hear the outcome of this revolutionary progression for the werewolf community.’ Jack finished and I smiled at him. ‘That was written by Argus Taylor.’

Lupin gave a small chuckle. Both Jack and I stared at him. ‘He writes very complimentary articles about the Tutshill Tornadoes, in particular James Potter.’ My eyes widened slightly. ‘I shall tell him you appreciate it.’

‘Am I missing something?’ Jack said, frowning. I laughed.

‘James Potter and our Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher were best friends at school.’ I said, impressing Jack a little and turning the heat down on the cauldron a little. ‘I guess he’s watching our backs.’

‘James is very good at persuading people to listen to what he has to say.’ Lupin explained. ‘I send him regular owls on your progress, I didn’t know he was going to do this, but it certainly won’t have done any harm… now, how did I do?’ Lupin stood back and I inspected his work.

‘Maybe, left the heat on too long.’ I grimaced. ‘It shouldn’t matter though. The water is pretty basic in its effects, you might need go to bed a bit earlier tonight, but it’ll be fine.’

Lupin smiled and nodded. ‘Thank you. Though I think you should make it for our volunteers, they’ll be arriving in a few minutes. Will you be showing them how to do it?’

‘Yeah, we figured keeping them in the loop and explaining what they’re putting in their bodies was probably the better option.’ Jack cut in. In truth, it had been Jack’s idea in the first place, he thought they should have seen how it was done so that if they need to, they could make it themselves. 

 

Doris and Julian were the first to arrive and I could feel the nerves building up in the pit of my stomach. Lupin had given me some more chocolate and told me to just take a few deep breaths and everything would be fine. Jack and my father had begun chatting away to everyone as they began arriving and I just tried to concentrate on breathing carefully.

‘How do you do this?’ I asked Lupin who just frowned. ‘Get up in front of people and teach them things, I feel like everyone’s staring at me and I don’t know what I’m talking about; what if I don’t and the potion doesn’t work? Or it does for one person and not the other? What if I need to adjust the dosage dependent on the length of time they’ve been a werewolf for?’ Lupin immediately took me out of the room to an empty room just off of one of the corridors.

‘You need to calm down.’ He said, putting his hand on his hip and I could feel myself panting and getting warm. ‘You have done great work and I can’t express how proud I am of you. All those questions you just asked, you know the answers and these people, these human beings, are asking you to help them. You’ve already said it, these people are real people, with real fears and real lives and they deserve better. You. Can. Do. This. Just imagine you and Jack are back in the courtyard and you’re showing off all your tricks to the first years again. Take your time and breathe.’ Lupin held my shoulders and his eyes bore into me. I felt that calm wash over me. ‘Jack, your father and I will not let you fail. If you need help, just ask for one of us to assist you and we’ll be there.’

I took a couple of deep breaths and nodded. ‘I can do this.’

‘Yes, you can.’ Lupin smiled and let me take a few moments to calm down before bringing me back into the lab where all five volunteers sat at the bench waiting for me to teach them about the potion.

It was a steady start and a couple of times I tripped over my words, but all of the volunteers listened intently to what I had to say until the Silvermint water had been made.

‘Does that make sense to everyone?’ I asked, glad that that part was over. A thin man in his forties with holes in his clothes and a gaunt, pale face, put his hand up. ‘Alfred?’ I suddenly felt like I was teaching a Hogwarts class and felt myself loosen up slightly.

‘I’ve never been very good at potions.’ He chuckled, his voice hoarse, much like Lupin’s. ‘Is there much margin for error?’

‘A little. Fresh mint is a very stubborn plant.’ I thought a little. ‘The Silver should always be added at the end and allowed to dissolve for three minutes minimum, but the heat has some margin for error, better hotter than colder though.’ Alfred nodded and Julian raised his hand.

‘How often does it need to be taken?’ Julian and Doris were holding hands and I smiled a little.

‘Once in the morning should be enough to get you through the day, but obviously if you feel you need more then it won’t do any harm.’ I told them and Doris smiled at her husband. ‘We’ve found that the main indicator that the water is wearing off is fatigue, so if you feel abnormally tired, either keep an eye on it or take a nap and see how you feel.’ There was a small hum of laughter around the room. ‘Once you’ve gotten used to the taste, the water itself doesn’t have a limit on the amount of times you can drink it, you can store it for around two days, but it must always be consumed hot.’

‘Why?’ A woman with silvery hair and a scar across her face asked. She was very beautiful and had been a werewolf nearly all her life, her dark eyes were almost hypnotising.

‘It just doesn’t work for as long.’ I said, simply. ‘The heat allows the mint to release both the energy and pain-relief over a longer period of time, drinking it cold only releases those properties over a few hours.’ She gave me a smile and nodded. ‘Well, if there aren’t any more questions, Jack will give you all a dosage and ask you a few questions on what you feel. Again apologies for the taste.’ There was another hum of laughter as I turned to Jack who began handing them each a glass of the water. ‘How was that?’ I asked Lupin and my father.

‘Really wonderful Angie.’ My father hugged me and smiled. ‘Your mother and brother will be so proud.’ He let go and watched me for just a moment. ‘I hope you don’t mind; I need to do my rounds. I’ll be back in an hour or so.’ I nodded and held my father again, before he left and I turned to Lupin who couldn’t help himself. He hugged me as well.

‘Thank you Angelina.’ He whispered and let go. ‘You did very well and they all seem very happy with what you were saying. You were very clear and aside from the two questions you got, you explained everything there was to know about the water.’

‘Good.’ I breathed a sigh of relief. ‘Have you taken yours yet?’ I said.

‘No, I thought it best to take it now so that the trial is consistent.’ Lupin explained. I watched Jack pour out a sixth glass and left it on the table. He began asking the group of volunteers the questions on the immediate feelings towards the water and we watched him. ‘Are you going to see your brother’s game tonight?’ Lupin suddenly asked.

‘Yeah, it’s against the Cannons.’ I said. ‘I think they’ll win.’

‘The Cannons haven’t won much of anything the last few decades. I’m sure your brother will breeze through.’ Lupin winked. ‘I’ll be listening on the radio for the results.’ 

‘You’re not coming?’

‘No, trial patients are being kept downstairs. And as I am technically a trial patient, that’s where I will need to go.’ Lupin again explained. I kept forgetting that he was part of the trial as well and I nodded. ‘There’s a Tornadoes game just before the start of term and James has promised me a box seat if the trial goes well. I would like to ask you, Jack and anyone else you like come and see the game with me?’

‘A box?’ I made sure I heard him correctly. 

‘Yeah, James has his own box at the club.’ Lupin laughed. ‘He sometimes asks if I want it, but I don’t really have anyone to go with, I used to go with someone, but since he… he’s not really around anymore.’ There was a heavy sadness to Lupin’s expression and I desperately wanted to cheer him up.

‘I think you should have some chocolate.’ I told him and he laughed again. Pulling out yet another bar from his pocket and popping a square in his mouth. ‘Do you always keep chocolate on you?’

‘Always.’ He nodded, swallowing. ‘You never know when you might meet someone who needs it. That, and it helps to cheer me up a bit.’ 

‘You never seem that down to me.’ I folded my arms and stood watching Jack take notes of what some of the volunteers were saying. ‘Who’s the woman?’ I asked Lupin, he smiled to himself.

‘That’s Clara, a very old friend of mine.’ He watched her and I got the feeling that it was more than friendship, but I was never a good judge. ‘She was the one who helped me when I first became what I am. She was very patient with me and I am very grateful to her.’

‘Do you love her?’ Something told me I shouldn’t have asked and that was quite a personal question.

‘In a sense.’ Lupin frowned. ‘She is my oldest friend, she went to Durmstrang and we would send letters to each other, just for a bit of moral support through the harder months, but the relationship we have is nothing more than that.’ I nodded. ‘That’s not really what you were asking was it?’ Lupin smiled down at me and I just looked away. ‘She was in love with someone and I never really saw her like that. We’re just friends.’ He clarified and I wasn’t sure why I was so interested in his relationship with anyone. ‘So, what's the next step in the plan?’ Lupin changed the subject and I was grateful.

‘Well,’ my voice cracked slightly and I didn’t know why. ‘I was going to show them how to make the modified wolfsbane and explain why I changed the original formula tomorrow. I’d like to keep an eye on everyone for today and hopefully figure out if there are any problems or a stronger dosage is needed.’

Lupin nodded and Jack came back with his clipboard, handing a small stack of papers to Lupin. ‘You need to fill this out, it just says that you’re happy to continue with the trial and will stick the rules we’ve set down.’ Jack explained. ‘The rules are on the back page and an outline of the trial stages are there as well. And you’ll need to drink the water I’ve left out for you.’

‘Yes sir.’ Lupin nodded and grabbed the goblet as he sat with the rest of the volunteers to fill out his form.

‘You did really well Angie.’ Jack said, as he began sorting through the answers to the questions he had asked the group. ‘The results of the initial consumption are good, everyone’s feeling good so far, the taste was pretty awful, but they all say they feel more energised than they did this morning. We’ll just have to wait and see if it lasts.’

‘It’s not the water I’m worried about.’ I admitted. The newest version of the potion involved only taking it once on the day of the full moon and after the first day, there was no turning back.

We had gone through the rest of the day, getting to know each other and talking about our experiences with werewolves, again, everyone seemed to hang on my every word. Alfred told us about how he was bitten only two years previous by a man who had been hunted down the ministry and thrown in Azkaban; Alfred had lost his job, his family and was forced to move around the country, struggling to earn enough to keep himself alive, let alone afford the ingredients for the Wolfsbane. 

A younger woman Alice, in her early twenties, with long black hair and bold emerald eyes, told her story of Fenrir Greyback spying on her until the full moon came when she couldn’t fight him off. I watched Lupin lower his head, understanding the fear of Greyback. Jack had handed Alice a tissue and smiled sympathetically at her.

Doris and Julian gave their accounts of what happened to their son and how they have had to move away from their home. Clara and Lupin seemed to be the most sympathetic and soon it was their turn to share their stories. I felt the tension in Lupin’s demeanour. Clara didn’t remember much about the night she was infected as she was so young and soon all the attention turned to Lupin.

I couldn’t stop myself crying when I heard his story, his father insulting Greyback and the werewolf hiding underneath Lupin’s bed to get his revenge. I could just about picture the terrified face of a young Lupin as the monster under his bed attacked him. Lupin put his hand on my shoulder and smiled. ‘It’s okay, it happened and it was terrible. But now, I don’t have to live in fear anymore.’

I wiped away my tears and nodded. There was hope for the trial and the lives of the six people that sat with me.


	19. Not Love, Not Yet

Lupin had watched her expertly go through the trial with him and the other five volunteers. He and Jack had done their part and asked questions and gathered any data she needed and it was suddenly clear on the morning of the full moon how tired she was. Jack had given her some more chocolate and George had helped where he could, but it was obvious that the six werewolves, who normally would have been sleeping or finding a place to hide, had so much more energy than she did. 

George had taken everyone further down the lower levels and shown them where they would be transforming during the full moon. They weren’t cages, they were slightly more humane than that, but Doris and Julian, understandably began to panic slightly. 

Clara had been the one to keep them calm, she had a way of just asking someone to be calm and they would be. Lupin admired that about her and tried his best to do the same, but Clara was the expert. Lupin had suggested that Doris and Julian stay close and change together, something that Angelina agreed with. She believed in her potion and the research she was doing enough to let them change together. Lupin believed she was extraordinary and Clara noticed immediately.

‘She’s very young.’ She pointed out with her silky voice. ‘But I have to admit, there is something about her that holds your attention.’

‘That coming from you?’ Lupin joked. They began taking off anything they didn’t want broken and put them into boxes that Jack would keep locked away in the research lab until morning. 

Clara laughed, taking off her black shall and silver locket. ‘She is special though. You should be careful you don’t make your feelings for her obvious, at least let her come of age.’

Lupin shook his head and almost laughed. ‘Jack’s in love with her, that’s what she needs, someone her own age and not a broken old man like me, she’s my student for goodness sake, it’s not appropriate or professional to say the least... She will change the world one day and nothing should hold her back from that.’

‘Love never is appropriate, it just happens.’ Clara noted, she slipped her shoes off and wandered in just a pair of three-quarter length trousers and a white vest into one of the containers. Lupin followed and leaned against the frame of the door, taking his watch off and watching her. ‘Trust me Remus, love has no age limit and no boundaries to speak of. Angie doesn’t understand it, but she will and she will ask you about it one day. Tell her the truth and let her work out what it means. She’s the most intelligent witch I have ever met, she’ll come back to you and give you an answer. Have patience.’ Clara smiled and began stretching her limbs, something she swore helped ease the pain even if it was only slightly.

‘I’m not in love with her.’ Lupin said, with a hint of finality.

‘No, not yet.’ Clara chuckled. ‘I feel it as well though, something about her… makes you want to just keep her safe doesn’t it?’ Lupin knew that Clara wasn’t just messing him around, she understood it as well. She understood the feelings he had towards her, it wasn’t love, not in that sense anyway. She had saved his life and of course, he would have developed a form of love for her, but likely the same love he had for Clara. He just wanted to protect her and make sure she was safe, that was it.

‘Remus.’ George called and Lupin spun around. ‘The moon’s up in a few minutes.’ He reminded him and there was a hint of nervousness that Lupin understood. Angelina appeared at the door, just as he was about to take his shirt off and he stopped. She went around each container and wished everyone luck, she promised she would play soft music to give them all a little company through the night. Lupin quickly unbuttoned his shirt and threw an old t shirt on. He turned around to see Angelina talking to Clara and he became suspicious of the subject of conversation. He went into his container and took a breath.

‘Good luck.’ Angelina’s voice rang through his ears. He looked up to see her smiling. ‘I’ll be back in the morning and my dad says he’ll make his famous hot chocolate for anyone who wants some. I told him only after the Silvermint water though.’ She chuckled and Lupin smiled, starting to feel a little anxious and tight in his muscles. ‘I hope it goes well.’ She said to the room and gave Lupin one last look before closing the door behind her.

There was a moment of silence before Lupin heard a sob coming from one of the containers. They were all in a semi-circle around each other and it was difficult to tell where it had come from, that was when Clara began speaking.

‘Stay calm Doris, Julian is right there with you and I promise you will be fine when it’s over.’ She was always good at controlling a room and even when Lupin could hear that familiar whip of panic in her own voice, she managed to calm the sobbing. Right on cue and as Angelina had promised, soothing music filled the room. Lupin closed his eyes, listening to the music and concentrating on his breathing, his body suddenly felt like it was being stretched…


	20. A Sleepless Night

I could barely sleep, I had too much nervous energy. Jack and my father had stayed up for as long as they could, before it was too much and they needed to sleep. I was worried that the potion didn’t work or worse, it caused more pain for them. I wandered around my room and read to keep myself occupied until I could see the sun coming up over the horizon. I jumped up and got ready to get back to the hospital, going over every scenario in my head. Mentally working out how quickly I could make the Silvermint water and what I would say as an apology if it hadn’t worked.

Argus Taylor and Damocles were waiting at the end of the corridor along with a group of Healers on hand to help in case something went wrong.

‘Take a breath.’ My father said as the three of us stood outside the container room. ‘Whatever happens, you have done a tremendous job Angie and the six people beyond this door, believe that you can save them from a life of pain and loneliness. Be brave.’ I nodded and my father opened the door. Jack and I had our wands raised just in case.

What lied beyond surprised everyone, Alfred had been in the middle of telling a story that had Lupin giggling like a child and even Clara smiled. Doris and Julian were holding each other, just listening to what was being said and Alice was encouraging the joking.

‘Can we assume it was a good night?’ My father said smiling a little.

Everyone looked at us. ‘Angelina.’ Lupin said softly and stood up with his blanket curled around his still scarred body. ‘You’ve done it.’ He whispered.

Jack was the first to me, he held me tight and we all cheered loudly at the success of the night and began opening up the containers letting everyone out. The Healers had come in and began doing their job. 

‘Angie, best make a start of the Silvermint.’ My father said after speaking to Clara who said there was a little pain, but nothing compared to what she was used to. The room agreed that although the transformations themselves were uncomfortable, it wasn’t painful and most of them slept soundly through the night. 

I ran up the corridor, past Taylor and Damocles, both of whom were a little shocked to see me move at such speed. ‘It worked!’ I yelled on my way past and didn’t look back, I just sprinted to the lab and began work on the Silvermint. Jack had followed me up to collect everyone’s belongings.

‘You did it Angie.’ He said, quietly gathering everything. ‘You helped them and they are so grateful to you. I’m so proud.’  
I leaned on the work bench and took a breath. ‘We really did this, didn’t we? We really gave them a nearly pain-free night? This isn’t a dream?’

Jack laughed. ‘No, it’s not a dream.’ I laughed as well and took another breath, I was exhausted, but I had to keep working, it wasn’t quite over yet. ‘I’d best get back down there. I’ll come back and help you bring the Silvermint.’

‘Thanks.’ I nodded. Jack left me alone in the room and I couldn’t get rid of my smile while I made the water. The door opened slightly and I turned to see James Potter looking at me tentatively, I'd heard someone from the Tornadoes had gotten badly injured the night before. ‘It worked.’ I whispered. A huge smile broke out on his face and he held me close, laughing as he did.

‘Thank you Angie, thank you so much.’ He said and I was unsure if he was crying or still laughing. He pulled away and there were in fact a few tears drying on his face, but he still looked happy. ‘I have to go, but tell Remus I was here and I’ll see him at the game.’ James winked and left the lab happier than I think I’d ever seen anyone before.

I took the cauldron down to the container room and the Healers began handing the volunteers a goblet full. Lupin didn’t take his eyes off of me, neither did Clara. Once they had been checked for injuries and finished their Silvermint, the Healers took them to another set of rooms where they could shower and get dressed. Clara had waited back for a moment.

‘Remus told me you're animagus?’ She asked curiously. I nodded. ‘A Wolf? Quite large by the sound of things.’

‘Yeah, quite the coincidence right.’ I laughed.

‘I don’t think so.’ She frowned and left with the rest of the group. I wasn’t sure what she meant by that, but I didn’t dwell on it too long as my father told me I needed to go and speak to Argus Taylor who would see that the results were published that morning.

‘So, what does this mean?’ Argus asked as we sat in the waiting room of St Mungo’s.

‘It means that the expected results of decreased pain and increased awareness when transformed, seem to have worked.’ I felt a twinge of nervousness. ‘We wanted them to be in full control when they changed and as far as we can tell that’s what has happened.’ I could feel Jack next to me, about to take over as I wasn’t very good at the talking side of things.

‘One more question and I’ll let you go.’ Argus said. ‘What’s the next step?’

‘We need to find out the extent to which the potion worked.’ I told him and he jotted down a few notes. ‘We will be talking to all five volunteers and asking them what they remember from the night, we have an Occlumens available in case they can’t remember and to help fill in any gaps.’

Argus nodded, I could tell he wanted to ask more questions, but recognised that I wasn’t comfortable. Jack took over and began explaining the reason for having an Occlumens and various other things I had only touched on. 

My father and a couple of Healers had begun questioning the group in one of the ward rooms and seeing that they got what they needed. I had wandered over to Doris and Julian, both of whom were sitting on the same bed and very stressed by the whole ordeal. ‘Are you alright?’ I asked them and handed over a row of chocolate each from a large Honeydukes bar I’d found in my trunk. I sat in the same chair I had done the first time I met them.

‘Just a bit shaken.’ Julian nodded. ‘Will it be like that every time?’

I sighed. ‘I don’t know.’ I told them truthfully. ‘I know it can be worse, a lot worse. Would you like me to see if Professor Lupin can come and explain better?’

‘It’s okay,’ Doris said shaking her head and looking exhausted. ‘We just… this is hard for us. Everyone else just seems so experienced.’

‘Well I’m not.’ I chuckled. ‘I have even less experience than you where being a werewolf is concerned.’ It made them chuckle a little.

‘At least you understand what we are now.’ 

I shook my head. ‘I understand enough to have given you a good night, comparatively speaking anyway. There’s still work to be done.’ I turned to see Lupin approaching, I shook my head slightly and he stopped, giving me a curious look. ‘I’ll give you a little time to get used to your bodies again and if you’re okay, I’d like to keep you all here just for another night. As far as I understand it, the effects should wear off come tomorrow morning and you’ll feel like your old selves again.’

‘Thank you.’ Julian nodded. They held each other and I gave them both another row of chocolate as I stood up. 

Lupin was still standing staring at me and smiled when he saw the chocolate. ‘Do you always keep chocolate on you?’ He chuckled.

‘Yeah, you never know when someone needs cheering up.’ I joked back. ‘How are you feeling?’

‘Good.’ He nodded slowly, still smiling. ‘It was a very good night. Though it seems some of us didn’t have quite such a peaceful time. Did you get any sleep at all last night?’

‘Not really.’ I sighed. ‘I was worried about everyone. I was worried it wasn’t going to work and you’d be in pain again.’ I could feel my face contorting slightly with the thought of these people in pain.

‘Be proud Angelina, I’ll keep saying it until you believe it. You’ve done tremendous work here.’ Lupin smiled down at me and I couldn’t help but smile back. ‘Jack said you’re going to keep us another night?’

‘Just to be on the safe side.’ I nodded. ‘I don’t expect anything to happen, but it doesn’t hurt to check… oh, James came by.’

Lupin’s eyes widened slightly. ‘What did he say?’

‘He just said well done and he’d see you at the game in a couple of days.’ I told him and it seemed to settle Lupin slightly. Jack came over to where we were standing, he looked like he was working hard.

‘Hey, just wanted to say that Argus said you might have to make a speech in a couple of days.’ He said.

‘What?!’

‘To present your potion to the ministry and get it approved properly.’ Jack explained. ‘According to Argus, it’ll be a big event and nearly everyone at the Prophet has volunteered to cover it, but I told him only he would be required. He said he’d send a copy of his article, it looked good and I think he’s probably more trust worthy than most of the journalists at the paper anyway.’

‘Wait, wait.’ I stopped him. ‘Let’s go back to the bit about me making a speech.’

‘What’s wrong with that?’

‘You saw how nervous I was in front of five people I didn’t know, how am I supposed to talk in front of a crowd!’

‘You can do this.’ Lupin cut in. He gave me an intense stare. ‘You can do this. You’ve come so far and this is just one more thing to get the word out and that’s it.’ Lupin had calmed me a little, but it was hard to wrap my head around the whole thing. ‘We’ll help you write the speech, don’t worry.’

‘Yeah, we’ll get you sorted.’ Jack agreed, but he didn’t settle me the way Lupin did. I just nodded and looked around for my father, who was on the other side of the room talking to another Healer.

‘Dad.’ I said, he spun around to see me and gave me a hug.

‘So proud of you Angie.’ He said into my hair. ‘You’ve made a real difference.’

‘Jack says I need to make a speech to the ministry.’ I said and he pulled away from me. ‘Do I have to?’

‘It’s how you get things approved.’ He chuckled. ‘You present your work to a room full of people including the minister, the Head of St Mungo’s and a few other ministry officials and there will probably be a few interested parties including a couple of journalists. They ask you a few questions and then it usually takes them anything from a few minutes to an hour to vote and then they tell you if they approve it or not.’

The whole conversation was making me feel sick. 

‘Take a seat.’ My father grabbed me a glass of water and I sat sipping it and thinking on what I would say to the ministry. ‘You can have as many people there as you like, you know that your mother and I wouldn’t miss this and I’m sure Darren would take time out to come and see you changing the world. We’re all right here for you Angie, we always will be.’

I tried to smile and finished off my water before continuing through the day. At some point Jack had been given the copy of the Daily Prophet with the new article and read it out for everyone to hear. He read as if he was entertaining a group of first years and everyone cheered when he finished, they began to turn towards me and clapped for me. I felt a little shy and just laughed at the room full of Werewolves and Healers who had helped me get to this point.


	21. The Ministry Speech

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to leave comments guys!

The day of both the speech and the Quidditch game was upon me. I had read several books on the subject of getting things approved by the ministry and had gone over my speech with Lupin, Jack and my father. It was good and I felt like I made my point clear on several occasions, it was just down to how well I presented my case to a room full of people. Darren had taken the day off to come and wish me luck, he looked like he’d been training hard and been bulking up over the summer and I hoped it was all worth it for him. 

I didn’t have many smart clothes, so just wore a black t shirt and black jeans, while my mother let me borrow her black blazer that rolled up to the elbows. I had my cue cards in hand and made my way to the ministry, where Kingsley had escorted me to a room where I could look over my speech and prepare for the demanding audience. Jack had come to wish me well along with my parents and Darren, but I only felt the nerves when Lupin entered the room in his familiar dark blue shirt and green-grey suit jacket.

‘How are you feeling?’ He asked and I just about broke down in tears. He immediately came and sat next to me, putting his arm around me. ‘Hey, you’re okay. Just take deep breaths for me.’ I did as he asked and felt myself coming back into some kind of control. ‘What’s wrong?’

‘It’s just so much pressure.’ I said, almost laughing. ‘I’m a fifteen-year-old kid. I can’t change the world and everyone is looking at me to do just that. I’m a kid Professor, at least in everyone else’s eyes I’m just a kid.’

Lupin was silent for just a moment, before he took a deep breath of his own. ‘For the purposes of what I’m about to say, you can call me Remus. Over the summer I haven’t felt much like your teacher, but rather your friend and I’d like to give you some advice, speaking as your friend.’ I looked at him and sniffed. ‘You are quite possibly the most extraordinary witch I have ever met, everyone says it, but I wonder if they realise why. They can make the excuse that they’re saying it because of your intelligence or because of how loyal and trustworthy you are, but I make no excuse. I don’t know why I think you’re extraordinary, I just do and right now I keep thinking how brave you are, you’ve already defied the odds and saved six lives including this old man’s right here.’ I laughed a little.

‘You can’t be that old.’ I wiped away my tears. ‘What are you thirty-five?’

Lupin made a face. ‘I’m twenty-five.’ He laughed.

‘You’re twenty-five?’ I exclaimed.

‘Yes, the grey hair doesn’t help, it’s what you get for being a werewolf.’ He shrugged, still smiling. ‘You just get old quickly, or you at least look it.’ We sat for a few moments longer, before Lupin handed me a row of chocolate, we both laughed and ate in silence. 

‘I think you’re pretty cool too.’ I said, swallowing. Lupin frowned at me. ‘You said you thought I was extraordinary, well I think you are too. I think it’s brave to trust someone like me with your life, I guess that makes you extraordinary too.’

Lupin laughed and raised his eyebrows. ‘Maybe it does, but that’s not for me to judge.’ He gave me another intense stare. ‘Those people out there will try to knock you down Angelina, they will ask you hard questions, they’ll try and confuse you with their words, but as long as you are brave and clear in what you want them to hear, they’ll listen and make the right choice.’

I nodded and thought about standing up to the world. ‘Remus,’ I tested and shook my head, making Lupin laugh. ‘That doesn’t sound right. Are we still friends right now?’ He nodded. ‘Then can I ask you a question as a friend?’

‘Sure.’ There was something a little tense about his demeanour.

‘Why do you call me Angelina? Everyone else calls me Angie.’ I watched for his reaction and for a moment or two his face was blank, before it settled into something uncomfortable.

‘Because…’ He stopped and took a breath, when the door swung open and Kingsley told us it was time. I felt the panic build up again. We walked to the door that led to the podium and I turned to face Lupin. ‘Be brave Angelina. Be brave and teach those first years a thing or two.’ He winked and headed into the room ahead of me.

‘I’m ready.’ I whispered and strode into the room with Kingsley hot on my heels. I took the two or three steps up to the podium and looked out at the audience. The minister sat nearly eye level with me at the head of the large group of ministry officials surrounding me. Below the officials was the smaller group of interested people, including Lupin who gave me another wink and I felt a wave of confidence hit me.

‘Good morning Minster and Ministry officials.’ I started, smiling out at the crowd and slipping on my glasses that I’d found I needed more and more. ‘My name, for those of you who don’t know, is Angie Lockwood. I am here today to present to you an improvement on the Wolfsbane potion invented by Damocles a few years ago. The Werewolf Problem, I keep hearing about, seems to indicate that these people are a permanent dangerous threat to our society, while I would agree one day out of thirty they are a threat, the twenty-nine other days they are simply tired human beings who suffer an immense amount of loneliness and depression. This was the reason for the Wolfsbane Potion being invented in the first place, to give them control during a full moon and prevent the spread of infection – though I would say virus is a much more accurate term. Though the Wolfsbane Potion itself worked as far as keeping the mind present and in control during a transformation, it failed to take into account several other factors such as the unbearable amount of pain experienced during a transformation and the fatigue leading up to the full moon.’ I took a breath and glanced at Jack who was leaning over the bench and listening intently to what I had to say. ‘I have been studying the potion itself for nearly two and a half years and I noticed something that I think everyone here can agree on; it was impossibly complex.’ There was a tiny flicker of chuckling that made its way around the room. ‘The ingredients were very expensive and it left us with two problems, one it depended on the werewolf community being educated enough to brew the potion, even though no one wants them in our schools and two, not only to be educated, but to have the means in which to afford the ingredients, which has been made difficult by business owners who don’t want these people working for them – you can’t catch lycanthropy simply by being near a werewolf, you can’t even catch it by touching the human form. You can make the argument, which Damocles has done several times, that the potion is expensive because it is complex, well I’m inclined to agree that his version-‘

‘I’m sorry.’ A hand went up and the entire room was startled to find that a woman to my left, who was wearing an alarming amount of pink was presumably standing up to ask a question. ‘Are you saying that Damocles, a man who has been awarded the Order of Merlin First Class and is considerably more experienced and educated than you, would intentionally make it difficult for these dangerous creatures to treat themselves?’ The room turned back to me, I felt a lump form in my throat, I looked down to Lupin who shook his head and I knew why.

‘I don’t believe my speech was finished.’ I eyed my cue cards curiously. ‘If you rephrase your question so that it has relevance, I’ll answer it at the end. Now-‘

‘Excuse me.’ She made a noise like a squeak and it immediately made my skin crawl. ‘But I believe it does have relevance. Your opinion of one of the greatest potioneers of this century may greatly impact-‘

‘I’m not accustomed to being interrupted as it is, Miss…?’

‘Dolores Umbridge.’

'Miss Umbridge, like I said, I’m not accustomed to being interrupted, especially when I know what I’m talking about and this entire gathering will run a lot smoother if I remain so to the end of my speech. It’s not customary to interrupt anyone standing at the podium and certainly not ask a question you know very well will be answered anyway.’ I gave her a moment or two, daring her to respond. When she didn’t I continued. ‘I am inclined to agree that the version created by Damocles was complex, however, it was unnecessarily so. During my study of the potion and of the werewolves themselves, I found that most ingredients when brewed at a higher temperature would evaporate and render useless. I progressed to using a sleep-inducing basic solution, this would mean that the potion would still be based upon the idea that we can put the wolf to sleep whilst keeping the human fully alert and awake during transformation. Using the sleep-inducing solution also meant I could lower the temperature it was brewed at and remove the bat blood. This would mean the Aconite could be incorporated into rose water and have the same effect. The next step was to look at adding a stronger pain relief that would continue to have effect throughout the night. Using fresh mint allowed that to happen.’ 

I took another breath and looked down at my father who was nodding and encouraging me to continue. ‘The fresh mint would allow for several other events to occur, the potion would become both a fast-acting and slow release pain-relief and it would act as an energy booster to the human side only. The modified Wolfsbane potion was consumed once on the day of the full moon and had the desired effects, the wolf was put to sleep in five cases and the human was kept awake. The potion was made simpler and more easily affordable for these people who live in a devastating state of poverty in the first place. In short it was a success. I would note that this potion worked in conjunction with the use of what was penned Silvermint water. This was the name given to a type of tea that was made by boiling fresh mint at a high temperature and adding silver that was then left for at least three minutes to dissolve. This gave the volunteers energy to live their lives as they normally would and additionally giving them a strong enough pain-relief to get the through their day to day activities such as any job they might be lucky enough to have. The water was consumed once a day every day for three days before the full moon and once the morning after. Minister, any questions?’ I knew the procedure, the Minister would ask the first question and if he had none then the room would vote immediately.

‘Why not just use basic solution?’ He asked, curiously making notes.

‘Basic solution contains hallucinogenics.’ I elaborated. ‘This would have the effect of basing the potion on a false sleep that the wolf could easily wake up from.’

‘What’s the margin for error? Small I take it?’

‘Larger than the previous wolfsbane.’ I removed my glasses and took a breath. ‘The previous potion would only allow for a few degrees either side of the indicated temperature. My potion, allows for up to ten degrees’ difference as it is made from more tolerant ingredients, such as the fresh mint and rosewater.’

Another wizard raised his hand. The minister allowed him to speak. ‘What’s the total cost of the potion? You’re talking about making it more affordable and yet it still sounds fairly expensive.’

I took my glasses out again. ‘The previous cost of the potion didn’t take into account equipment used such as the pewter cauldron, any cutting equipment used and storage jars for each ingredient, and came to…’ I shuffled through the cards, feeling a slight whip of panic creep through me, until I found it. ‘Twenty-six galleons.’ There was a small shocked intake of breath around the room. ‘My potion, including equipment costs twelve galleons; less than half the original asking price. However, the cost can be further reduced by home growing some of the ingredients, something many people do anyway.’

Umbridge raised her hand and I tried to make it seem like I didn’t notice. The minister nodded for her to speak and I slid my glasses further up my nose watching her stand again. ‘Why do you refer to them as people?’

‘Excuse me?’ I could feel a small bubble of anger rising in my chest.

‘These are dark creatures, dangerous and without any sense of humanity. Forgive me, but why would I want to waste my time helping such a creature?’ The whole room waited for me reaction and I decided not to let her get away with anything.

‘I have absolutely no interest in helping something that hunts humans and does not respond to normal methods of communication.’ I said and there was a hum of confusion coming from the smaller group of interested people. I looked down to see that Lupin had no idea where I was going with my answer. Umbridge sat down, satisfied. ‘But I’m not talking about helping the wolf, I’m talking about the human… We are told from a young age that werewolves are dark creatures and, for reasons beyond my comprehension, we chose to live with that as fact instead of questioning what we hear. Well, that may be true of the wolf that is seen once a month for less than twelve hours a day, but what about the human that continues to live the other twenty-nine days and twelve hours. That man needs our support and our patience, that man goes through unbearable agony every month, his bones snap and readjust, his skin is stretched to the point of breaking and his mind is broken entirely, all this man wants is to be treated with respect when he is a man. Don’t get me wrong, when the full moon is out, I’ll be the last person to suggest wandering around a forest in the dead of night.’ Another small hum of amusement. ‘But the human is still human and if I was treated the way they are… well, let’s just say that I’m not surprised most of them are in hiding and trying desperately to make a life for themselves. They can’t help their anatomy, but maybe we can help them see that the world doesn’t end just because you’re dealt an unfair card.’

The minister seemed satisfied and only had one more question for me. ‘Miss Lockwood, you talk as if these creatures should be moved into the category of Half-breeds, can I assume that if the vote is yes, you will be campaigning for that right?’

‘Minister,’ I took my glasses off again, ‘if I had my way, I’d ask for it right now and get it all done in the one sitting.’ The minister laughed and I smiled what I hoped was a winning smile. I could see him about to speak again when once again Umbridge interrupted.

‘Minister, can I just point out one thing that we all seem to be forgetting?’ The minister eyed her over the top of his glasses. ‘We have been gathered here to listen to a child talk as if she has done decades of research into these beasts and come up with solution to the werewolf problem. By her own admission she has barely spent two and a half years on this, I would urge us all to think about this clearly, before throwing away Damocles’ decades’ of research so willingly.’

The minister looked to me to respond, I looked at him directly and smiled.

‘May I then point out, minister that Miss Umbridge is correct about nearly everything, I am a fifteen-year-old child and I came up with a remedy to help reduce the number of people turned into werewolves every year and gave the already existing werewolves a second chance at a somewhat normal life… What does that tell you about how easy it was?’ The minister gave a small laugh, he nodded his head and turned to the people sitting beside him, they all came to an agreement.

‘The room will take fifteen minutes to cast their votes and I will read the results then. Miss Lockwood, you may wait outside.’ He said and I began collecting my cards.

‘Thank you for your time minister.’ I said, smiling up at him, before striding confidently out of the room that was buzzing with noise. I could hear a someone running after me, but I could only concentrate on Kingsley opening the door to the room I was in previously. I went straight into the bathroom and threw up, falling back against the wall.

‘Angelina.’ Lupin knocked on the door. I could just about reach the handle and let him in. ‘Are you alright?’

‘Better now.’ I said, flushing the toilet. Lupin just smiled and sat down beside me. He handed me a handkerchief and I took it smiling. ‘How did I do?’

‘Excellent.’ He chuckled. ‘Really well. Umbridge is the main official you wanted to watch out for, but you dealt with her beautifully. Here.’ Lupin got up and handed me a glass of water. ‘I’m afraid chocolate won’t help this time.’

‘That’s blasphemy.’ I mumbled, sipping my water and it made him chuckle. ‘Fifteen minutes.’ I said, leaning back and checking my watch. ‘All our work comes to a conclusion in fifteen minutes. What am I supposed to do in the mean time?’

‘Well, you could listen to me tell you how great you did?’ Lupin suggested. ‘Or you could find the energy to stand up and see your father who is waiting outside to tell you how great you were?’

‘Both sound unbearable right now.’ I told him.

‘Okay, how about you tell me what you want to do this year?’ I looked up at his blue eyes. ‘You’ve got your OWLs to think about, I think Dumbledore and McGonagall want you to take as many subjects as you can. I’m sure they’ll tell you that once the voting is over.’

‘They’re here?!’ I exclaimed and sank further down the wall when Lupin nodded.

‘I’m sure they’re very proud Angelina.’ I sipped some more of my water and sat back up. ‘What do you want to do?’

‘I want to sleep.’ I admitted. ‘Are we friends right now? In the sense that I can say something without repercussions.’ Lupin nodded slowly. ‘I’m glad I had you during this whole thing. I don’t think I could have survived and I certainly wouldn’t have helped anyone. You’re very good at keeping me calm… I’m not calling you Remus anymore though, it sounds weird in my mouth.’

Lupin chuckled. ‘Fair enough… I think you best go and see your father though, he’ll be worried.’ Lupin stood and took the glass from me, I took a breath and Lupin held out his hands to help me stand up. I felt a little dizzy at first, but soon Lupin helped me out and we found my parents and Darren who were waiting outside.

‘Angie, are you alight?’ My father looked at me. ‘You look a bit pale.’

‘I did just make a speech to the entire ministry dad.’ I joked and it settled my nerves.

‘Well done,’ Darren threw his arms around me. ‘No matter what the vote, it took a lot of courage to stand in front of the minister himself and say the things you did, looked like he respected that as well. Hopefully that will work in your favour.’

It was my mother’s turn to hold me. ‘You are so special Angie, you’ve changed the world and your father and I could not be any prouder to call you our daughter.’ She kissed my head and I felt my cheeks flood. ‘Thank you for looking after her Remus.’ My mother, to everyone’s surprise, hugged Lupin, who momentarily looked taken back, before putting his arms around her gently. My father was just as surprised and soon pried her away from Lupin, chuckling slightly.

‘We best get back inside.’ Darren said, following my parents. He couldn’t help himself, he held me again and lifted me a few inches off the ground. ‘My sister, the werewolf whisperer.’ He joked and I rolled my eyes. ‘You’ve got this.’ He quickly jogged back into the room and Lupin gave me a wink before doing the same. I waited just a few minutes longer, skipping up and down the corridor and swinging my arms around in circles to keep my energy up, before Kingsley came out to get me. I took a deep breath and once again strode up to the podium.

‘Miss Lockwood.’ The minister started, he was giving nothing away and read from a piece of paper. ‘The votes have been cast and the majority of the council you see before you today have voted to approve the modified Wolfsbane Potion, here in after known as Lockwood’s Wolfsbane. Do you have any objections to the name?’

‘Not at all.’ I shook my head, I tried desperately to keep a cool and professional head and not look at any face I recognised.

‘The council have also moved to approve the Silvermint water, here in after known as Silvermint Tea. Any objections?’

‘No sir.’ I shook my head again.

‘Good, in that case, as we are aware you will be starting your fifth year at Hogwarts within the week, the council have elected to postpone your award of the Order of Merlin first Class until the Christmas holidays. We will also be looking into placing werewolves into the Half-breed category and expecting a compelling argument on the matter next summer; I hereby give the Minister’s approval to make Miss Angelina Glamora Lockwood the world’s leading expert in lycanthropy and look forward to any further research you do.’ This was a shock to most people in the room and the minister glanced around. ‘You really think we were going to let you walk out with just a pat on the back and a well done Miss Lockwood?’ I just gave a small chuckle and rubbed the back of my neck. ‘We’ve read the reports and you have done a tremendous amount of work in this field and we are very grateful for your dedication and commitment. I look forward to your future achievements, study hard and you may well sit in this seat one day.’ The minister winked. ‘The council is dismissed.’ I could feel my heart racing at a million miles an hour. 

Most of the journey out of the ministry was a blur, everyone had hugged and congratulated me, including Dumbledore, McGonagall and the three people I’d missed most over the holidays, Jocelyne, Benji and David. Dumbledore had suggested that we all go to Hogwarts to eat before everyone went to the Magpies-Tornadoes game and not a single person disagreed. 

Everyone sat at the Gryffindor table and I sat just next to Dumbledore and opposite Lupin. I had Jack on my other side and everyone else sat further down, including all five volunteers and the rest of the Hogwarts staff. We laughed and joked and celebrated in our achievements, when Dumbledore tapped his goblet and stood to make a toast.

‘To Angie Lockwood, as her brother so plainly put it, the werewolf whisperer.’ There was small amount of laughter that erupted from the table and I felt myself going red as I shook my head. ‘Not even taken in your fifth year here and already achieved more than most at this table. To Angie.’ There was an echo down the table and we took a small mouthful of butterbeer. ‘And now, I believe Remus, you have something you’d like to say to everyone.’ 

‘Yes.’ Lupin stood, raising his cup as well. ‘Angelina, Jack. You both have done extraordinary work and changed the lives of six broken people, you have both defied the odds that were heavily stacked against you and still you persevered. You worked through every problem and every obstacle with a clear and logical mind set and never backed down when the task ahead of you looked impossible, for your determination and your perseverance, I offer you my thanks. However, none of this gives you permission to give anything less than your best when studying for your OWLs.’ There was a hum of laughter. ‘To Lockwood’s Wolfsbane and to all its creators.’ Lupin didn’t take his eyes off of me when he spoke, no one else seemed to notice, but the intensity was unnerving. I looked away and laughed with Jack who was being congratulated by everyone as well.

The celebration was over and I took the time to head out into the fresh evening air, the castle was peaceful when it was empty and everything seemed calm and a million miles away. I could hear someone walking up behind me as I sat watching the still water of the Black Lake. ‘Beautiful.’ Lupin said softly.

‘It really is.’ I agreed. Lupin sat next to me. ‘So, are you Professor Lupin again?’ I asked, nudging him a little, he laughed and bowed his head.

‘I think it’s best, yes.’ Lupin said, I didn’t quite understand what he was saying, but I agreed he probably knew what was the best course of action. ‘I think while you’re studying you think of me as your teacher, however, my offer will always stand. If you need anything, to talk or just some time away from everything, my door is open and I don’t suppose there’s any harm in offering myself as a friend at that point.’ I smiled and Lupin gave me a curious look. ‘Why do I get the feeling you’ve been holding in how happy you really are?’

I laughed and stood, taking my blazer off. I threw it down and walked up to the water of the Lake, I took a deep breath and let out the biggest howl I could, laughing as I calmed down and turning to see Lupin laughing as well. He stood up and howled loudly as well, we laughed for what seemed like hours, before he made a suggestion. 

‘You’re animagus is a wolf, Angelina.’ He stated and I looked at him. ‘Well… try it.’ He said and went back to sit on the rock. I closed my eyes and concentrated on my wolf form, I opened them and saw Lupin staring up at me in awe. I turned back to the lake and howled loudly again, this time it echoed all around the grounds and it felt so good that I went to sit down beside Lupin who again had that intense look. I changed back and got my breath back. ‘How did that feel?’

‘Pretty damn good.’ I admitted. We sat for another few minutes, before Lupin checked his watch and it was time for us to leave to catch the game. 

My parents, Lupin and my friends all watched from James Potter’s box and we drank a few butterbeers, relaxing, feeling the good vibes all around the stadium. James flew up to the box and put his hand out to everyone, we cheered and it was a good night all in all, by the time I lay my head down to sleep I was exhausted. I’d woken up a scared fifteen-year-old child, nervous to talk to a room full of people who knew more about life than I did and I’d gone to bed a leading expert in werewolves with an Order of Merlin First Class, it had been a very good day and I would only get one more day of rest before my fifth year of Hogwarts began and the next challenge came along. My OWLs.


	22. Christmas

The start of term was hard, most people asked me about my summer and congratulated me on finding the cure. It got a little tiring having to tell everyone it wasn’t a cure, but I appreciated the thanks all the same. Dumbledore had chosen to only mention what I had done once during the start of term feast, to give me the ability to concentrate on my studies which would be hard as it was. I was being placed on a two-week timetable which would mean I could take near enough every subject. The only ones I chose not to take was Muggle Studies, Arithmancy and Divination, much to the amusement of Lupin who helped me make the decision to take double DADA, double Potions and double Transfiguration. It was going to be a hard year.

The first couple of months weren’t so bad and I tried to teach Lupin to make Lockwood’s Wolfsbane without my help. I had written out the instructions for both the Silvermint tea and Wolfsbane in a separate notebook along with some of the margins for error in case it went wrong at any stage, and I’d given a copy to each of the volunteers as a thank you for all of their hard work. Lupin had a little trouble with some of the timings, but he soon got the hang of it. He still insisted that I remain on hand up until Christmas just in case and in return he would help me with any work I had to get done.

I had shown McGonagall my animagus and she clapped a little and was more excited than I think I’d ever seen her. 

‘Oh, I knew it would be a wolf!’ She said, smiling broadly at me. I didn’t know quite how she could have known that, but it got me wondering about my Patronus. I’d not had the chance to produce it again with the workload getting heavier, but Lupin assured me that it was most likely a wolf and wasn’t at all surprised given my own attributes.

‘What does that mean?’ I asked, trying to finish my Herbology report.

‘Wolves are recognised leaders.’ Lupin said, tidying his desk a little. ‘They are highly intelligent and aren’t afraid to do what needs to be done, they’re very brave creatures; at least that’s what’s known about them.’ I looked up at him still busying himself with his desk.

‘Sounds more like you than me.’ I said and got on with my report that I was so close to finishing. 

Lupin laughed a little. ‘No… no, it’s definitely you. I had this thrust upon me, you were born this way…. Anyway, are you nearly finished?’

‘Close, I’m just finishing my conclusion.’ I nodded. ‘I’ll be out of your hair in five minutes.’ I promised. Lupin looked as if he had a faint expression of disappointment, but I wanted to get out into the fresh air before dinner so I ignored it.

The workload had reduced slightly towards the beginning of December and we finally had an evening free to do as we pleased. I decided to go swimming in the Black Lake again and Jocelyne rolled her eyes, noting the freezing temperatures. 

‘I’ll be fine.’ I said, taking off my robes and feeling the brisk air hit my skin. ‘Oh that’s brisk.’ I could see Hagrid laughing as he approached us. ‘Alright Hagrid?’ I called whipping out my wand to heat myself up a bit.

‘You swimming again Angie?’ He asked and I nodded, muttering the charm and feeling significantly warmer. ‘Mind out for those Lionfish.’ He chuckled. ‘If you find any more of the blue Puffapods, Professor Sprout has asked you to collect a few, she found they work well as a fertiliser for nocturnal plants.’

‘No problem.’ I nodded and began walking into the freezing water. ‘Damn that’s cold.’ I turned back and laughed, before performing the bubble head charm and diving into the murky water. I’d spent a long time in the water and my body temperature had dropped a little, meaning I needed to go and see Madame Pomfrey before I went to bed, she wasn’t best pleased and it was the first time I realised that Darren really was gone. I’d been playing on the Quidditch team without Darren or Katie for nearly three months and it was only then I noticed that they really weren’t coming back to Hogwarts.

Quidditch had been difficult as well, I’d been forced to teach the two new Chasers the plays that we would be making and told the captain, Alistair that if I could just get a good scorer and someone with good agility then I could work with them and hopefully have another successful season. One of them was second year girl Claire, who was small and quick, but not quick enough to be a Seeker and the other was a fourth year boy, Gordon who was fairly lean for his age and had a good eye for the hoops. The both of them had a lot of flair and I told them flair was fine, but you had to back it up with skill, at least that’s what Darren had taught me.

We were sitting third just ahead of Ravenclaw and it didn’t look like the season would get much better, but then we did have a professional player on the team the year before. I’d written to Darren several times and always listened on the radio or gotten a hold of the post-match reports whenever he had a game. I was glad to see he was doing well and my parents had told me that they were going to Japan to see him compete in the international cup for a week. 

I didn’t feel much like spending Christmas in Japan and decided to stay at Hogwarts after the award ceremony, I had a lot of work to get done for my classes and for the first time it seemed like a struggle. 

The last day of term was upon us and I just about refused to do anymore work, I was exhausted and nervous for the award ceremony. Lupin and Jack had helped as much as they could in writing a short acceptance speech and I’d received a few letters from Doris and Julian who both said life was getting worse, but they were now understanding that the Wolfsbane really was helping during transformations.

I felt sorry for them and my head was torn between going to visit them at Christmas, and remaining at Hogwarts to start work on my speech for the rights campaign in the summer that Jack had managed to get me on the list for. I didn’t ask how he managed it and I didn’t really want to know, I just appreciated the work he was helping me do.

‘Are you ready?’ My father said to me, just before I went out to receive the award from the minister. I’d worn the same all black attire and took a deep breath nodding. ‘It’ll be a breeze, just remember to thank the volunteers and your teachers for getting you this far, if you forget everything else it’s fine.’ He winked at me and left me alone listening to the minister give a small introduction to me, one more deep breath and I strode out into the spotlight. 

I ran on automatic for a while and thanked all the participants, the Healers, my family and my teachers for giving me everything I needed to come up with the idea. A special mention went to my father, Jack and Professor Snape for encouraging me and pushing me to achieve. Lupin gave me another quick wink and the Minister and I stood for a photo, I held my certificate for everyone to see and smiled.

I’d told Jack that I really didn’t want to talk to the reporters and answer the same questions over and over again, I would of course give Argus Taylor a quick five minutes, but if Jack wanted to, he could answer any questions anyone else had. Argus had fired off a few questions about what I would be working on next and if I would remain at Hogwarts to finish my schooling or continue my research elsewhere. I’d made some idle joke about not taking the merits of education too lightly and he let me go before the five minutes were up.

My parents had told me to keep the certificate at school, to remind me of what I’d already achieved and to inspire me to go further, after that, they’d gone straight to Japan to spend Christmas with Darren.

 

Most of my time was spent in the library while it was quiet, I’d gotten most of my work done, it was just DADA which I didn’t feel much like doing on Christmas Eve. Instead I took a trip to Hogsmeade and sat in the three broomsticks reading my new Care of Magical Creatures book that I had yet to finish. I sipped my butterbeer, before taking my glasses off and rubbing my eyes. I opened them to see Rosemerta lifting a glass and giving me a nod, I smiled and lifted my own glass, taking another sip of butterbeer, before getting back to my book.

By the time I’d finished, it was time to think about going back to the castle. The snow was already starting to fall heavy and I wanted to pop into Honeydukes before heading back. I’d picked up four or five different bars of chocolate and asked for them to be gift wrapped before heading back to the carriages. 

The castle was beautiful covered in snow and I was disappointed to see that the Lake was frozen over. I might not have gone swimming very often at that time of year anyway, but I liked having the option. The school was empty and I only saw Lupin and one student on my way to Lupin’s office. I dropped off the chocolate with a note and headed off to bed.

Rosa, one of the girls in my dormitory had chosen to spend Christmas at Hogwarts as well and I’d spent the morning with her, opening up just about every present I had that was not so unusually book shaped. She had just laughed at me, but to be honest, I probably didn’t appreciate much else unless it was some kind of artefact or something that would challenge me. We made our way down for breakfast and it was one of the only times that I’d eaten in the Great Hall in my jumper and jeans. It was strange seeing the Hogwarts staff wearing slightly more casual robes as well, even Hagrid was wearing what I could only assume was a jumper.

Rosa had been reading the Prophet opposite me, whilst I was being questioned by a second year Hufflepuff student on the Puffapod I’d found, when it struck me that she had a frown on. ‘Something caught your interest?’ I said, taking a mouthful of pumpkin juice. She just looked at me with a face of disgust and handed me the paper. She was furious to the point that she was nearly crying.

I read the article she pointed to; it was about a muggle family that had been killed, apparently a group of wizards had taken part in a hunt, using various memory charms and setting the muggles loose in a forest, only to kill them at the end of it. The wizards in question had been taken to Azkaban to serve life long sentences, but it appears that this was not the first time it had happened. I’d ripped the article from the paper and handed her back the paper.

‘They’re in Azkaban,’ I told her. ‘They deserve to be there and those people are better off dead than whatever else they could have gone through.’ I’d caught the attention of a few students and teachers, but simply crumpled up the article shoving it in my pocket out of sight. It was Christmas after all.

We had gone back to the common room after that and I’d written a letter to my parents and Darren, thanking them for their presents and wishing them well. Rosa’s mood had improved and she began messing around with the new telescope that her parents had sent her. 

I grabbed my coat and scarf and headed up to the owlery with my hands tight in my pockets. The owlery was a lot warmer than I’d anticipated and loosened my scarf as a result, I called Ruben who looked fresh and ready to make the journey to Japan. He’d grown so much over the years I’d had him and was stronger and faster than most of the owls, I’d hoped it was thanks to my training that I’d given him every couple of weeks. 

I tied the letter to his leg and we went out into the snowy weather. ‘Good luck and make sure you rest if you need to, no point in tiring yourself out.’ I said, he hooted happily and I sent him on his way, watching until he was entirely out of sight. I quickly wrapped my scarf around my neck again and took one step to leave the owlery, before slipping and falling the entire way to the bottom. ‘Dammit!’ I kicked the stone wall and felt both my ribs and my head aching.

‘Angelina!’ I heard someone call and knew immediately it was Lupin. He helped me to sit up and like he had done all those years ago, held my face to check for a concussion. ‘Doesn’t look as bad as last time, no concussion.’ He breathed a sigh of relief. ‘You know, that top step gets icy during the winter.’ He chuckled and I just rolled my eyes. ‘May I?’ He pointed to my ribs where a sharp pain was shooting through them. I just nodded and let him feel the bone gently. ‘Definitely broken.’ Lupin nodded. ‘I’ll give you a minute, but we’ll need to go and see Madame Pomfrey to get them fixed.’ 

I tried to sit up properly, but it was little good, I was still trying to get my breath back. ‘I hate those stairs.’ I said, wincing at the sharp pain.

‘I can imagine.’ Lupin chuckled, he watched me for a moment. ‘Thank you for your gift by the way. It was very kind and what you said was very much appreciated.’

‘I meant it.’ I said and indicated that I could get up. Lupin slowly helped me to my feet and caught me as I fell against the wall feeling dizzy. I caught the last of what looked like surprise on his face.

‘Come on, let’s get you to the hospital wing.’ Lupin said and helped me walk back into the castle. ‘You meant all of it?’ He asked out of the blue. I gave him a questioning look. ‘The note I mean, you meant everything you said?’

‘Of course.’ I panted. ‘Why wouldn’t I?’

Lupin didn’t answer and I didn’t press him, the pain in my ribs was too much for that. Instead he helped me into one of the beds and went to get Madame Pomfrey.

‘I would’ve thought you’d learn by now Angie.’ She said, rushing around getting what she needed to mend my bones and clear my head a little. I had unzipped my coat so she could get a look underneath my t shirt at the broken bones. ‘Here we go, deep breath for me.’ I took as deep a breath as I could as she muttered an incantation to put me back together. ‘All done, drink this and I’ll come back to check on you in an hour or so.’ Pomfrey handed me a goblet filled with a nasty looking liquid, Lupin just laughed a little and sat next to my bed.

I pulled my t shirt and jumper down to keep the cold away from my skin. Lupin just watched me. ‘Feel better?’ He asked and I nodded. ‘Good… what happened at breakfast? Between you and Rosa?’

I finished the rest of my potion and coughed a little, before rummaging around in my pocket and handing Lupin the article. ‘She was pretty upset about it.’ I said and rubbed my sore ribcage while Lupin read the article.

‘I’m not surprised.’ He crumpled it up and brought his wand out, setting fire to the paper. ‘Best not to think about such things, especially at Christmas.’ Lupin smiled a strange smile, like he didn’t believe what he was saying. ‘Anyway, I have a couple of errands to run, here.’ He pulled out a small book of Grindylow tank maintenance. ‘A gift from a friend, no need to be bored while you wait for Poppy to give you the all clear.’ I laughed, glancing at the book. ‘I’ll be back in half an hour to check on you.’


	23. Lupin's Gift

Lupin quickly went up to the owlery to deliver his letters to the Potters and Clara, pointing his wand at the icy step and melting it just in case anyone else had a similar accident. He then rushed back to his office, taking his cloak off and seeing his stack of Honeydukes chocolate out of the corner of his eye. He smiled to himself and picked up the note that Angelina had written with it:

Remus,

It still sounds weird in my mouth. One friend to another, I hope you know how much I appreciate your guidance. You make me feel confident and you make me believe in myself, this is something I’ve been taught you can’t repay, but I feel I should at least make an effort. Thank you for being my greatest friend this past year, you’ve given me the courage to try and be the best person I could possibly be and I hope I never lose you.

Merry Christmas.

Angelina

Lupin smiled to himself, before picking up the gift he had every intention of giving her. He wasn’t sure when he’d have the opportunity, but while she sat in the hospital wing, it seemed as good a time as any. He knew it was a little inappropriate, but he didn’t know how else to thank her for giving him a piece of his life back.

He picked up the small box and put it in his pocket, heading off towards the hospital wing. He found her staring at the ceiling, looking extremely bored and he had to laugh as he sat down beside her bed again.


	24. Christmas pt. 2

I quickly sat up, just a little too excited at the prospect of not being alone anymore. Lupin was laughing a little and I frowned.  
‘Did you finish the book?’ He asked, throwing one leg over the other.

‘Yeah, pretty obvious stuff to be honest, especially if you already know what a Grindylow needs to survive.’ I said, handing him the book back. ‘Did you get all your errands done?’

Lupin nodded. ‘I did. I also went back up to my office to pick up this.’ He pulled out a small box with a note on it. ‘Open it first and read the tag when I’m gone.’ He instructed, I frowned but opened the box anyway. Inside was a beautifully constructed object, that looked a lot like a spinning top, but it was clear on top with golden cogs inside that made it work.

‘Is this what I think it is?’ I asked, not quiet believing what I was holding.

‘It’s an Auror’s sneakoscope.’ Lupin explained. ‘Clara, helped me get my hands on one and I thought you might like it.’

‘I do, thank you.’ I hoped he could see just how much I did appreciate it. They weren’t easy to come by and were usually only given to Aurors that went out into the field on a regular basis. ‘How did you get it?’

Lupin tapped his nose. ‘That would be telling and I’m not so sure I should be encouraging the behaviour displayed in acquiring this particular item.’ There was something a little cheeky about his smile, I laughed and began examining all the parts of the sneakoscope. ‘Anyway, have you finished your work for this term?’

‘Just your essay to do.’ I sighed. ‘I kind of burnt out yesterday before I got to it.’ Lupin nodded, knowing what I was talking about.

‘Anything you’re struggling with?’

I shook my head. I wasn’t struggling with my school work, everything else was a different matter. Lupin seemed to sense this and leaned forward in his seat.

‘Do you want to come up and talk about it?’ He offered and I wasn’t sure I did. ‘How about just a cup of tea?’ How did he know what I was thinking? ‘I’ll go and see if you’re allowed to leave yet.’ Lupin smiled and went over to Poppy’s office. I smiled and looked down at the sneakoscope, it really was beautiful. I could see the tag, sitting just next to me and decided to read it:

Angelina,

I cannot express how much all of your hard work and determination means to me. I hope that you find the sneakoscope useful and consider it a small token of my respect and admiration for you. You are the most extraordinary person I have ever had the privilege to meet and I hope to remain your friend for as long as you would have me around.

You are truly special to me.

Remus (or just Lupin)

I smiled and placed the sneakoscope back inside it’s box as Madame Pomfrey came over to the bed and allowed me to leave as long as I had some chocolate and rested before dinner. I promised her I would and wandered out of the hospital wing with Lupin keeping a watchful eye on me. We made it to his office and admittedly I still felt a little light headed.

Finally, we settled down with a cup of tea in hand and I decided to bring something up that I knew he couldn’t talk about, but I’d heard the rumours same as everyone else.

‘I heard the Triwizard Tournament is coming to Hogwarts next year?’ I said and bit off a piece of chocolate from the row Lupin had handed to me. ‘Any truth to it?’

Lupin just laughed. ‘You know I can’t talk about it.’ He said and winked.

‘So it is coming back.’ I nodded and looked into the fire briefly. ‘Jack thinks I should enter my name.’ Lupin suddenly stilled.

‘People have died in the tournament.’ He said gravely.

‘I know.’ I nodded. ‘I just wanted to ask your opinion, I might not even be chosen if I enter my name.’ I shrugged and sipped my tea.

‘I can’t think of many other options the cup would have.’ Lupin said thoughtfully. ‘Your brother might have been chosen over you, maybe only just though… what I would say, is that you be absolutely sure about what you’re thinking about doing. The tournament is designed to test you in the harshest possible ways, it doesn’t just take an enormous amount of intelligence, but also a lot of physical endurance and mental strength. You have to be one hundred percent confident that you have those attributes, before you enter your name.’

‘So you’re saying I shouldn’t put my name in the cup?’

Lupin sighed and looked into the roaring fire in his office. ‘I can’t tell you to do anything. You are your own person and exceptional to say the least, but caution should be expressed when talking about the tournament. It’s not to be taken lightly and it will be exhausting… all I will say is, be certain you can survive, first and foremost. Winning the cup should be your second priority.’ Lupin eyed me and looked as if he was trying to read my mind.

‘I’ll think about it.’ I promised. ‘Out of curiosity, what kind of tasks does it usually involve?’

Lupin sighed again. He put his empty tea cup back on the table. ‘Usually three tasks, spread out over the course of a year, one will test your physical abilities, one tests intelligence and one combines both and tests courage.’

‘Do you know what the tasks are?’

‘I have a feeling about the first and last, the second one is a little harder to judge. It could be anything.’ Lupin nodded and gave me a look that said he wasn’t going to talk about the tasks anymore. ‘Angelina, promise me you’ll not make the decision to enter until next year. Do the research and consider what you’re getting yourself into.’

‘I will, I promise.’ I nodded and finished my tea. ‘Thank you for the sneakoscope and I appreciate what you said in your note.’ I watched Lupin’s eyes widen slightly. ‘My dad always told me if I had just one person who believes I can achieve anything, someone who isn’t family, then that person should be treated with as much respect as you expect in return… I’m glad you think I’m special. It means a lot.’ I place my empty cup down and watched Lupin for a moment, he had that same look that said he was thinking very hard about something.

He checked his watch. ‘Three hours until Christmas dinner is ready in the Great Hall, what would you like to discuss in the meantime?’ I felt like this was a kind of deflection, but I didn’t press the matter.

‘Will you tell me about Azkaban?’ I asked, the article still loosely in the back of my mind. Lupin frowned and pursed his lips. ‘It’s not something I’ve read much on, I know the dementors guard it, but I don’t know much about their magical attributes or where they came from.’

Lupin thought for a moment before taking a breath. ‘Dementors are quite possibly the foulest creatures to exist in our world, they feed on happiness and hope and every good memory a person has. They are classed as non-beings, which I’m sure you know, means they aren’t exactly alive, they’re amortal, like Boggarts. Creatures that were never born, so cannot die or be killed… in the earliest days of Azkaban, the people who investigated it, said that the dementors were not the worst thing about the place, though I don’t dare to find out what it was they saw there.’ Lupin took a breath and thought about what he was going to say. ‘We don’t teach much about certain creatures, because some students might find it distressing. That’s why you might not know much about the Dementor’s Kiss.’ I frowned a little and Lupin sighed. ‘It’s considered the worst thing the human mind and body can go through, the dementor first feeds on your happiest memories, wearing you down to a point where you… well, most people beg for death.’ I began feeling a little uncomfortable, but gestured for Lupin to go on. ‘The dementor, after wearing you down to that point then lowers its hood and… removes your soul; it’s something most people say is unbearable to witness. The process of removing someone’s soul-‘

‘It empties you.’ I interrupted and Lupin nodded. ‘Turns you into a shell of a person… my dad said there was a patient once at St Mungo’s that had an encounter with a wild dementor, said that he couldn’t perform the patronus charm in time and had his soul sucked out. My dad said that he never spoke and probably never felt anything ever again.’

There was a cold silence that was shared between the two of us as I thought about my dad coming home from work and telling my mother that. I’d been listening at the top of the stairs and it was just about the only time I’d heard my father cry.

‘Dark magic is extremely powerful isn’t it? I mean there isn’t much that can stop it?’ I swallowed.

‘No, not a lot of things can stand up to it.’ Lupin agreed sadly. ‘Love, I’ve always found is the best hope anyone has of defeating a Dark witch or wizard. Even the darkest creatures that walk this earth cannot understand love the way a pure soul can and that is the greatest weapon any witch or wizard has.’

‘Love doesn’t stop possession.’ I mumbled and leaned on my hand staring into the fire.

‘Of course it does.’ Lupin breathed, I looked at him and knew the face of someone who was desperate for me to understand something. ‘Angelina, love is the most powerful force any human can experience. Possession in terms of Dark magic cannot possibly hope to stand a chance against it. Possession cannot control who you are, who you really are; we are defined by the choices we make and the people we choose to love. You must always remember that. You are surrounded by people who love you unconditionally and that is something no one can take from you.’ 

Lupin and I sat for a while, just staring at either each other or the fire, before we slipped into discussion about other types of good magic, the kind that Lupin felt more comfortable discussing with me. We soon moved onto my essay and he’d given me a few tips on what to talk about and various books that might’ve helped in the library, before heading down for Christmas dinner.

 

Christmas came to an abrupt end and it was time to get back to work. I told my friends about entering into the Triwizard Tournament if the rumours were true – I chose not to tell them about my talk with Lupin. To my surprise everyone was very supportive of the decision to do it, even, Jocelyne thought I could win no problem.

The term started well until I made the mistake of showing off just before a DADA class and Lupin had caught me pranking another fifth year student. I’d sent a note over to his desk that turned into water when he opened it. No one had noticed Lupin standing at the top of the stairs that led to his office, until he announced that I’d have detention with him that evening. Mostly I spent it writing lines and being bored, something he knew drove me insane.

The exam period came a lot quicker than anyone expected, I’d turned sixteen and I had a lot of studying to do for all of my subjects. I’d introduced Jocelyne to Firenze who taught her all about the planetary alignments that helped her pass most of her assignments. We’d been with him one evening, the two of them mapping the stars while I read up on material for my Charms assignment.

There had been a snapping of twigs just behind where I sat and I whipped my head around, feeling all blood rushing to my legs. I watched where I thought I heard the sound come from and took out my wand as a precaution. Nothing seemed to happen for a while and I had the distinct feeling that something was watching me from a distance. I began to back up towards where Firenze and Jocelyne where looking up at the stars.

That’s when I saw a stampede of Unicorns running in the distance. Firenze had been at my side almost instantly. ‘You must both go back to the castle.’ He said. ‘It is not usual for Unicorns to stampede.’

‘What are they running away from?’ I asked, not dropping my wand.

‘Something dangerous.’ He didn’t elaborate any further and Jocelyne and I quickly gathered our belongings and began running towards the edge of the forest with Firenze watching our backs. I thought I caught sight of something floating just next to me, but I was running too fast to be sure of what it was. 

I was absolutely certain that something had grabbed at my foot and tripped me over, causing me to fall into a clearing. I heard Jocelyne calling me from much further away than where I had fallen. I looked down at my leg that was bleeding through my jeans and winced at the pain of putting any weight on it, I wasn’t good at healing spells and so simply conjured some bandages to stop the bleeding. It was a hard spell and took me a few minutes to finish. 

I was suddenly surrounded by silence, I took a breath and stood up, holding my wand up and having the same feeling of being watched. I looked for a way out of the deep cavern I had fallen into, moving carefully and slowly, I could see a slightly lower incline just behind me in the direction I knew the school to be in. I knew something was watching me, waiting for me to make a sudden move, I stayed still for a while, wondering why Firenze hadn’t come back for me by now, that was when I had an idea.

I quickly changed into my wolf form and sprinted as hard as I could towards the castle. The extra weight was killing my leg and I changed back, still sprinting hard and finally seeing the tall figure of Hagrid and what I could only presume was Firenze and Jocelyne next to him. 

I sprinted hard and fell out of the forest in front of Hagrid.

‘Angie!’ Jocelyne cried and bent down to see me leg. ‘Were you right behind us? I didn’t see you, there was this white fog and I could barely see anything.’ I noticed that she was still panting heavily. ‘I saw you fall; how did you get up so quickly?’

‘What are you talking about?’ I whined at the increasing pain in my leg. ‘I was in that cavern for ages, why didn’t you come back for me?’

‘Angie, I’ve only just gotten out of the forest.’ She explained and I saw Firenze and Hagrid exchange looks.

‘It was the Mist.’ Firenze said. ‘A very old resident of the forest. Be glad you were only there for a few minutes.’

‘Let’s get you to the hospital wing.’ Hagrid said and scooped me up. 

Before I knew what was happening, I was once again waking up in the hospital wing, but this time it was Professor McGonagall who was watching me. I frowned and Madame Pomfrey came over immediately to inspect my leg.

‘Not bad Lockwood.’ She said and gave me a tight smile. ‘Few more hours and that leg will be completely healed.’ She handed me a goblet of some potion or another and I drank it without complaint.

I watched McGonagall for a moment or two before she spoke. ‘You had an encounter with the Mist?’

‘That’s what Firenze said.’ I nodded and sat up properly. ‘What was it? I was there for ages, but Jocelyne said I came out of the forest just after she did.’

McGonagall sighed. ‘It’s best you don’t go back into the forest so late at night again.’ And with that she left. I was never going to be satisfied with that as an answer and as soon as I’d been up to the common room to let everyone know I was okay, I was straight back in the library trying to find out what the Mist was. I came up empty in every book I read and soon frustration got the better of me and I slammed one of the books down.

‘Lockwood.’ A silky voice came and I turned to see Snape eyeing my curiously. ‘What are you doing?’ he glided over to me and I sighed.

‘Sir, I was in the Forbidden Forest last night and something happened.’ I explained. ‘The Unicorns began to stampede and Firenze told us to run back to the castle. Something grabbed my foot and I fell into a steep clearing, I was there for ages, I’m talking maybe twenty minutes and Firenze and Jocelyne didn’t come back for me, they said they just saw a white fog. Firenze said it was something called the Mist and I can’t find any references to it anywhere. Can you explain what it is or at least tell me where to look?’

Snape just gave me a disinterested look. ‘No, though I suspect if you ask a Dark Arts expert, they might be able to shed some light on your mystery.’ Snape turned on his heel and left me standing between the shelves. I’d put off asking Lupin, because I didn’t want him to ignore my question like McGonagall had and like Hagrid and Firenze had.

I’d left it for the rest of the day before Lupin had caught my eye at dinner. He was keeping a watchful eye on Jocelyne and I for obvious reasons and I decided to just ask him what the Mist was as everyone left the Great Hall to go about their evening. 

He had given me a look that said he really didn’t want to talk about it. ‘Please professor.’ I said, just a little too loudly and it caught the attention of a few people around us. Lupin sighed and guided me to a corridor where no one could hear us.

‘Angelina-‘

‘Angie.’ I corrected and realised that I hadn’t done that in a long time. He gave me a suspicious look.

‘For the sake of your health, do not dwell on what you saw in that forest.’ Lupin was in teacher mode, he wasn’t taking any crap.

‘But I didn’t see anything!’ I exclaimed and struggled to keep myself under control. ‘I didn’t see or hear a damn thing. There was nothing around me, why didn’t they come back for me?’

‘Angelina,’ Lupin gave me that look that calmed me immediately. ‘Listen to me, really listen to what I am telling you. The Forest has a great many creatures and we don’t fully understand them all. The Mist is one of them, all we really know is that people have gone mad paying it too much attention. Do not dwell on the Mist and when you are in a clearer mind I will explain everything, I promise. I’m doing this for your own good, promise me you’ll try and stop thinking on it.’

I felt my breathing get a little heavier. ‘You promise that you’ll explain? You give me your word that you’ll tell me what it is?’ I had to make sure. Lupin looked at me as if I’d just yelled in his face, he took me further down the corridor and into an empty classroom.

‘Angelina.’ He breathed and held me. ‘I promise as your friend that I am helping you.’ He pulled back and looked like he was trying to keep his emotions in check as well. ‘I can’t explain anything just now, but as soon as your exams are over, come and see me and we will talk about the Mist, I promise… do you believe me?’

I looked at him and knowing that I wasn’t a good judge of when people were lying anyway, nodded. ‘I trust you.’ I said and tried so hard to believe that.


	25. The Mist

I’d been sleeping, I was sure of it, but for some reason I could feel the cold grass beneath my feet and a sharp breeze piercing my skin. I opened my eyes a little and it was just enough to see that I was walking towards the Forbidden Forest, there was something peaceful about it, it didn’t have its usual air of terror. I could see a fog moving quickly through the trees. The Mist. It was so beautiful and I wanted to move faster, I wanted my legs to carry me further towards it, but they wouldn’t move any faster. So, I just thought about being in that cavern, about being watched. It had been warm and almost comforting, I was sure it was, that had to be what I was remembering, comfort and warmth, not panic and fear like I had told everyone. No the Mist was good, people needed to see this.

I could hear a dog barking in the distance and I wondered if it had been introduced to the Mist and how beautiful it was. A light went on, but I just kept walking towards the Forest, I had to make it. I could feel sharp, icy, cold air circling my legs and arms and realised that I was still in my pyjamas. So I had been asleep? Something suddenly felt wrong, I thought I could hear someone talking, two voices, but I couldn’t worry about that. I could be dreaming; I could be having a nightmare. The Mist was watching me, it glided towards me and soon took on the shape of a man, I definitely recognised the man, but I could work out who-

‘Lupin.’ I breathed and the talking stopped, everything stopped. I stopped walking. Lupin had told me he’d explain everything, I said I trusted him, I could feel a sharp pain shooting through my leg and it brought me to the ground, if this had been a dream then I wouldn’t be able to feel that pain. This was not a dream and I could feel the panic starting to take over, I needed to get back to the castle, but every time I went to leave I could feel that pain in my leg. I could just give up; I could let the Mist take me. ‘I said I trusted him.’ I yelled, reminding myself over and over again that Lupin knew what was best, he held me and told me so, that had to mean something.

I began to crawl away and the Mist took on a new form, Darren. Darren was back home, he wasn’t here. The Mist was trying to trick me, while I felt like I had the will power I leapt up and ran back towards the castle, only to run straight into Hagrid, McGonagall, Pomfrey, Lupin and Dumbledore all at once just outside Hagrid’s hut. The pain in my leg was killing me and I could see the sun beginning to rise. I was sure I could feel Pomfrey on my leg and Dumbledore firing off more questions than I recognised, before I finally feel asleep properly.

 

When I woke I could feel the sun on my face and it felt good. I tried to sit up, but fell weak against my pillow, I tried to remember what had happened. The Mist had called me in my sleep and beckoned me back to the Forest, I’d been walking and there had been a dog barking.

Madame Pomfrey suddenly came into view and I remembered seeing her when I ran back to the castle. I’d seen other teachers as well, but the memory was still a little foggy. The fog, I’d seen Lupin in the Forest, I tried to sit up again, but Pomfrey wouldn’t let me.

‘Just rest.’ She said, in a much softer voice than I was used to. ‘Everything will be explained when the headmaster gets here.’ She smiled and checked my leg. ‘I’ll be back in a moment, just rest Angie.’

I looked around the hospital wing and wondered why none of my friends had come to see me. I wondered why Jocelyne hadn’t stopped me from leaving the dormitory. I soon felt myself dozing away until I opened my eyes and saw Dumbledore sitting beside my bed. I went to sit up again, but couldn’t find the energy.

‘You must be tired.’ Dumbledore noted and I nearly laughed, but I only felt a smile happen. ‘I heard you’d had an encounter with the Mist, though I don’t expect anyone thought you’d been too badly affected by it.’ I frowned. ‘Madame Pomfrey has removed it all from your leg now… the Mist is an extraordinary creature and has been here long before I ever came to Hogwarts. I’ve seen it drive students and teachers mad searching for it, but never have I seen it latch onto someone with such determination… I expect you’re wondering where your friends are?’ I nodded. ‘The exam period continues whether we are sick or not, don’t worry, you’ll be able to take your exams when Madame Pomfrey allows you to leave, though I don’t doubt you’ll pass them with flying colours.’ Dumbledore began to stand. ‘Professor Lupin has been very worried about you, he’ll be here soon and as I understand it he has promised to answer your questions about the Mist.’

Dumbledore left the hospital wing and I thought about the figure I’d seen in the trees. I tried to rest again, but I found my mind was beginning to race, I didn’t quite understand what was happening. Soon though Jack, Jocelyne, Benji and David had come rushing into the hospital wing to see how I was, I still felt weak and couldn’t find a lot of energy to speak, but Madame Pomfrey had come over and explained that I was still resting and they could only stay for a few minutes. That was when I saw Lupin slowly walking in, he went straight to Pomfrey and they began talking quietly to each other.

‘The exam wasn’t that hard.’ Jack had been telling me. ‘Though I don’t know what double Dark Arts is like, it might be need a bit more explanation, it’s three hours long and that one was only two so… I don’t know, I’m sure you’ll get the top grade anyway.’ I gave him a small smile. ‘You’re tired aren’t you?’ I nodded. ‘Okay, we’ll leave you to rest.’ Jack had forced everyone away from my bed and all of them put up a small argument that he didn’t listen to. I wanted to laugh, but I couldn’t find the energy again.

I closed my eyes for just a moment and opened them again to find Lupin next to me, watching the hospital wing go about its day. I didn’t bother making a move to sit up, knowing full well that I wouldn’t have the energy. I turned my head to get a look at the people being brought in and sighed, looking back up at the ceiling. Lupin didn’t speak for the longest time and it was only when I was just about to close my eyes and sleep again that he did.

‘What did you see?’ His voice sounded much hoarser than I was familiar with. I turned and frowned, Lupin was looking at the floor and circling his thumbs around each other. When I didn’t answer he looked up. ‘You were staring into the Forest for a long time, you must have seen something?’

‘Figure.’ I mumbled.

‘You saw a figure?’ He asked, I nodded. ‘Was the figure doing anything?’ I shook my head. ‘It was just standing?’ I nodded again. Lupin sighed. ‘The Mist has a strange way of behaving, it generally stays away from anything it can’t feed on, but with you… do you remember anything else? Like how you got to the edge of the Forest?’

‘It’s blurry.’ I tried to say as clearly as I could. ‘It called me.’

Lupin held the bridge of his nose. ‘I promised I’d tell you about it.’ He said and took a breath. ‘The Mist is a creature, much like the dementors, it feeds on our emotions, the stronger the emotion the more it has to feed on… it seems that on your first encounter with it, it began seeping into the cut on your leg and that was how it managed to communicate with you. It probably waited until you were just paranoid enough to go back and then called for you.’

I frowned. ‘Wasn’t paranoid?’

‘That’s not what we saw.’ Lupin almost chuckled. ‘You were not acting as you normally did, even Professor Snape said your behaviour was curious in the library, well, you can imagine that caught our attention and then when you approached me outside the Great Hall, it was obvious something was very wrong… the normal procedure when someone has an encounter, on those very rare occasions, is to keep the victim from thinking about it for an extended period of time, usually they would then forget about it and it never comes up again. That’s why you won’t find much about it in any book, but it was clear this wasn’t just an ordinary encounter; paranoia is what it uses to keep its victims coming back. That’s why we tried to stop you thinking on it, but we were too late. Lucky Fang heard you outside and alerted Hagrid to your presence outside the Forest. He said you’d stopped at the edge and were telling it to stop watching you.’ Lupin looked like he didn’t want to continue talking.

‘I wasn’t talking.’ I said, not remembering any of this part.

‘Talking is a kind word.’ Lupin said and took another breath. ‘Hagrid sent Fang to wake up Madame Pomfrey who immediately came to your aid, she said you were screaming at it to stop watching you, that’s when Dumbledore and McGonagall were woken up. They said you kept asking if it was a dream and then began talking through the reasons why it could have been and why it might not have been… I was only alerted to the situation when they heard you say my name… that’s why I asked what you saw.’ Lupin rubbed his hands together. ‘I ran down and saw you crawling back towards us and screaming for me to help you, but I couldn’t, this was something that you had to do on your own, the Mist would only leave the Forest for you and we might not have gotten you back. That’s when you called for Darren and began limping back towards us, you were crying and screaming for someone to help you.’ 

‘I don’t remember screaming.’ I told him, feeling a little more energy than I had before.

‘No?’ Lupin leaned forward. ‘I’m surprised the whole school didn’t wake up it was so loud.’ He watched me trying to remember. ‘Well, it’s over now. How do you feel?’

‘Tired.’

Lupin smiled. ‘Yes, I expect so. Get some rest, I’ll speak with Professor McGonagall about both exams you’ll be missing and see if you can sit them some time after the exams are over. As long as you really are okay?’ I smiled and nodded.

‘Thank you for coming to see me.’ I said and thought I saw a small lift in his posture.

‘You’re very welcome. I promised I would.’ Lupin stood and left me alone in the hospital wing. 

I felt so much better once my leg had healed over and I was allowed to leave the hospital wing again. The Mist no longer bothered me and I sat my exams, including the two I’d missed. McGonagall had sat with me as I took them in her classroom after everyone else. Jack had suggested we all go to Hogsmeade for a butterbeer to celebrate completing our OWLs and so that’s what we did.

The end of term feast celebrated a Slytherin win for the house cup, with Hufflepuff coming second and Gryffindor and Ravenclaw tied for third. No one really cared that much, instead we were all excited about the possibility of the Triwizard Tournament that was even more heavily rumoured to be coming to Hogwarts in the following year. 

Once again we had spent our last day of term by the Black Lake, throwing rocks and relaxing before we left to go home for the summer. Though my summer would include my speech for the rights campaign and I was nervous as it was for it. Everyone had helped me prepare some material for it and Jack had taken on the role of Campaign manager, though David had a much stronger head for it, they worked together and Jocelyne and Benji, who announced themselves as a couple at the beginning of the summer, helped to give the speech a little flair and structure. I’d hoped that this could have been the start of something great.


	26. Red Caps and Anglerfish

Darren came home for the summer and told us all about the season he’d had and everything he’d learned already, he was doing very well for himself and particularly enjoyed the matches against the Tornadoes where James Potter made nothing easy. He told his stories about his time in Japan again and it sounded like he was having the time of his life, I was so proud to be his sister.

My dad had informed me that they were getting less and less cases of werewolf bites coming into St Mungo’s and it was at that point I decided to send a letter to Lupin, not just to tell him about the progress, but also to see if he would be at the rights campaign to hear my speech. 

I spent a lot of time sitting at my kitchen table answering questions from my friends about what I wanted for the werewolf community and why I wanted it, the really important reasons that the ministry would listen to. The speech was coming together nicely and I even practiced giving it to everyone including Doris and Julian who looked a lot thinner than when I’d previously seen them, but they looked happy all the same. 

I’d taken a trip to Diagon Alley the day before the speech was to be given at the ministry and I noticed a few people eyeing me curiously. I tried to ignore them and wandered into Flourish and Blotts where I felt safe at last, I spent a long time trying to find a book that would give me more information on previous rights campaigns and also on the history of werewolves. It seemed the second book didn’t exist as the man behind the counter didn’t know of such a book.

‘That Angie Lockwood should right one.’ He chuckled and I’d given him a strange look. ‘You know, the girl at school who invented Lockwood’s Wolfsbane? You can’t tell me you’ve never heard of her?’

‘No, I have.’ I quickly said and mentally rolled my eyes.

‘Well, then you’ll know about her Order of Merlin and that she was declared the world’s leading expert. They always write a book in the end and when she does, come back to Flourish and Blotts.’ He smiled cheerfully and I handed him a few coins for the rights book. I smiled back and left the shop. It was strange that someone would say that, I didn’t know everything about werewolves and certainly not enough to write a book, though Argus Taylor thought it was a good idea.

The rights campaign had begun and as a speaker I got a vote on some of the topics that had been talked about and that the ministry hadn’t come to a decision on. These were old topics of conversation and it seemed everyone knew what was being said. I’d left half way through something about Vampire nests to get ready for my own speech, everyone wished me luck and I’d run into Argus who stood taking notes on what was being said.

‘All experts write books eventually.’ He said, quietly, still jotting a few things down. ‘It’s how they educate the world about the things they’re studying. If you’re seriously considering it, let me know, I have a few publishing contacts who can help you figure out where to start.’

‘I don’t know what I’d even write about.’ I admitted. ‘You know, it’s only just occurred to me that I’ve never actually seen a werewolf.’

‘Really?’ He seemed fairly shocked by this.

‘I came close once, but I was very young and probably would’ve just thought it was some kind of wild dog staggering around.’ I thought back to when Lupin had emerged from the trees and I’d been scared for him.

‘Well, I wouldn’t tell too many people that.’ Argus said and began clapping as the wizard who had been speaking left the podium. I turned to where my friends and Lupin sat and they all gave me a thumbs up, except Lupin who just smiled and gave me a wink. I felt that familiar surge of confidence and strode up towards the podium to give my speech. 

It was over before it really began and soon I was taking in the applause, gathering my cards and wandering back to where Argus was clapping much louder than he had done for the Vampire speech. He shook my hand as I walked by as did a few other people and I took my seat again to watch the rest of the campaign speeches. Again everyone congratulated me and we all attended a small gathering where I met a few more of the speakers, all of whom said they enjoyed my speech and all had very different opinions on what was going to happen.

Lupin eventually went back to Hogwarts and the summer went on, my rights proposal had been turned down and none of us were surprised. None of us really expected one speech to change the lives of the werewolf community. Doris and Julian had taken it a little harder than everyone else, but I tried to encourage them to have hope for next time.

The summer continued and Jack spent a lot of time at my house, asking my dad questions about being a Healer while I read my books. I’d picked up a book that Lupin had recommended I read, called Hairy Snout, Human Heart, by an unknown author. I was captivated by it and had written asking if he had any idea who the author might have been. I never got a reply.

I’d also picked up a book on the Forest of Dean, a place that I’d never been, but would like to have gone. My parents had warned against going alone, but no one else wanted to go because of the large spiders, they certainly didn’t want to spend the night there. I decided to go for a day and see the Anglerfish that lived there, it was a hard trip and I purposely avoided going during a full moon. I had no intentions of staying overnight, but there were plenty of muggles and other wizards setting up tents when I got there.

I kept my wand and bag close to me and wandered off towards the river to the south of the Forest, the track got progressively harder to walk and I wondered if it was by design. I finally got to the water’s edge and sat down getting my breath back for a moment; the water was so still and calm and I wondered how many people made it this far. I couldn’t hear anything except the breeze whistling through the trees, that was when I saw a ripple occur not so far away from where I was sitting. I watched the same spot for a moment and nothing happened for a while, until a small light slowly peeked out before diving again.

I stood up and moved my bag a little further away from the water just in case. I watched the same spot again and nothing happened, not until a group of Red Caps went running into the water, armed with weapons and began fighting with the Anglerfish, trying to bludgeon it and succeeding to a point. Four of them carried it on their shoulders and they walked away from the one Red Cap that had been killed during the whole ordeal, another Anglerfish had burst from the surface and eaten the body. 

I fell back a little shocked at what I’d just seen and the group of Red Caps all turned to look at me. I slowly reached for my bag as they began putting the dead fish down and moving closer to where I was sitting. I tried not to make any sudden movements, but soon found myself running back to where the muggle camps were. I heard the Red Caps shouting and running after me until I got back on the smooth trail, that seemed to be the edge of territory and I took a moment to catch my breath, before deciding it was time to go home. Until I was of age and could use magic outside of school, I wasn’t going to risk my life too often without being able to defend myself. 

It took a lot longer to get back than I’d hoped and naturally my parents were worried I’d gone missing. I told them about what I’d seen over dinner and my father handed me a small stack of letters.

‘While you were fighting off Red Caps and Anglerfish, we collected your mail.’ He said, laughing a little, much to my mother’s disapproval. One of the letters was obviously from Lupin, one from Doris and Julian and another from Hogwarts. ‘Your OWL results?’ My father asked.

‘Must be.’ I shrugged and opened up the letter. I read through the first page and flicked over to the second that told me I had an ‘O’ in all subjects. ‘Passed everything.’ I said and handed it to my father who slipped his glasses on and read through it with my mother.

‘Oh well done Angie!’ My father exclaimed. ‘That’s a good set of results right there. You must let Darren see when he comes home tomorrow.’

‘Congratulations darling.’ My mother kissed the top of my head and hugged me. I just laughed and carried on eating my dinner, entirely forgetting that I had two other letters waiting for me to read. I went to bed happy with my results and the rest of the summer washed in without much of note happening. 

 

The day before I got the train back to Hogwarts I noticed the two letters that I’d forgotten to open a few weeks previous. I sat in bed and opened the one from Doris and Julian first, they just wanted to let me know how much they appreciated the work I was doing on the campaign and looked forward to my next speech, they also wished me luck for my next year at Hogwarts. I placed it next to a blank piece of parchment and quill to remind myself to write back before I left. Lupin’s letter was only half a page long which was unusual in Lupin’s letters, he usually wanted to know everything that was happening with my summer and if I was happy.

Angelina,

I’m sorry but this will be short, I have to leave the school for a couple of weeks and will not be able to write while I’m away. Well done on your results, I saw the official list this morning and felt I should write to congratulate you on all your hard work. If I am back before the start of term, I should like to talk to you about your summer and how the rest of it went, I imagine you have a few stories.

I shouldn’t tell you this, but the Triwizard Tournament is in fact coming to Hogwarts, we will host Durmstrang Institute and Beauxbatons Academy. I am aware of what each task will be and if you still want to take part I would like to offer myself as your mentor, more will be explained at the start of term feast. This decision should not be made lightly, though I have every belief you will overcome every challenge that faces you.

Stay safe.

Remus.

I reread the note a few times before getting up and packing my things ready for the school year, I thought on what the tasks could be and what kind of year was ahead of me, a long one no doubt.


	27. Three Champions

The train journey back to Hogwarts was a little frustrating, the door to our compartment kept opening for people to ask if we were all entering the Tournament, we all decided to enter our names and if any of us got picked we’d help each other every step of the way to win the cup. I’d heard a few other students talking about entering and a few of them stood a good chance; nearly everyone who was old enough from the Quidditch teams would enter their names, they were the physically capable and probably the more intellectually capable students who would be entering.

We were all excited about Durmstrang and Beauxbatons coming to Hogwarts, we’d heard that they would put on an introductory presentation and we were right, Durmstrang had performed a sort of warriors dance and they all looked like they were strong fearless competitors. Beauxbatons was a different story, they were a little frilly for my taste, but I knew they would probably have some smart witches up their sleeve.

Once everyone had settled, Dumbledore stood up to welcome everyone. I noticed that Lupin was back, looking a little worse for wear, he had a bandage over his arm and a few cuts on his neck and face. The rumour was that he’d been hunting dragons in Romania, but Lupin didn’t have an extensive interest in dragons, certainly not enough to go hunting them; I’d ask him when I got the chance. 

‘…Eternal glory! That's what awaits the student who wins the Triwizard Tournament, but to do this, that student must survive three tasks. Three extremely dangerous tasks… anyone aged sixteen and above will be allowed to enter,’ There was a small hum of disappointment around the room. ‘I wish you all luck and may the best of us be chosen.’ Dumbledore glared over his spectacles at the room, though I was certain he spent a longer time looking at me and the people around me, but it could have been my imagination.

Dumbledore introduced Barty Crouch from the ministry and he told us what the rules of the tournament would be. Each champion would choose a mentor to assist them during the tasks, this was to combat the number of deaths that had occurred in previous Tournaments; the mentor could be either another student or a teacher and would also be the one, should you get stuck, to retrieve you from the task. This person should be chosen wisely as you would not get a second chance to choose someone. Crouch also explained that many people had died in the tournament and unless you were prepared for this, you should not consider entering.

The feast began and I’d overheard a few people admiring both the Durmstrang wizards and Beauxbatons witches. I didn’t really know what all the fuss was about and looked up to see Lupin looking a little miserable and trying to look interested in what Flitwick was saying to him.

We had spent the evening with the Triwizard Cup staring out at the students and it was a little unnerving. The Cup was stunning and I could see Jack holding it at the end of the last task and all of us cheering for him. It was at that moment that I realised that Jack probably had a better chance of being chosen than I did, he was kind and compassionate and very smart, he knew how to read people and knew what the right choice was constantly. I’d made too many mistakes so far, like the Lionfish and the Mist, the cup would know and choose someone who could fight back and survive.

Jack seemed to sense what was going through my head and smiled. I just chuckled and continued to eat.

The week went on and in between classes we’d stop off in the Great Hall to watch the contestants putting their names into the Goblet of Fire. There was an age line around the goblet to stop anyone younger than sixteen entering their name, I’d been reading through one of my textbooks with Jocelyne and David, when Benji and Jack jumped over the benches and Jack wrote everyone’s name and school down on a piece of parchment.

‘The champion is chosen tonight,’ Jack said excitedly.

‘Now’s a good a time as any.’ Benji and Jack high-fived each other and Jocelyne and I just rolled our eyes. 

David was the first to step up, a small cheer from a few of the Hufflepuff girls erupted just next to us and we just laughed. Benji leapt up and offered his hand to Jocelyne with a big smile and led her down to just in front of the goblet, handing her the piece of paper with her name on it, she laughed and entered her name just before he did. The crowd had clapped and then erupted when Jack stood up and showed off to everyone. Jocelyne and I just laughed and I put my book away knowing that I would be next to stand up. 

I could see Crouch and Lupin standing in the doorway, they were laughing at Jack being a show off and suddenly Lupin looked straight at me and winked. I stood up immediately and squared up to Jack.

He gave me a challenging look and encouraged the crowd to egg us on a little. ‘So, here we stand Lockwood.’

‘Here we stand Rathborne.’ I agreed as we both circled the goblet, the crowd were enjoying the show and we both stood either side of the goblet watching each other, before I curiously looked over his shoulder, making him turn as I quickly stepped towards the cup and put my name in. The crowd laughed and cheered and when Jack looked back, realising what happened he just laughed and bowed in defeat, placing his own name into the goblet. We went to sit back down and I could see Lupin looking sadly at the ground, I’d gotten distracted with the people congratulating on entering to go and see him.

Soon it was time for the champions to be selected and I had yet to speak with Lupin, I saw him walk past the table we had found ourselves at and went to get up, before yet another student wished me luck and I missed him. I sat back down and waited for Dumbledore to speak.

‘…one final word before we begin; let us be clear, if you should be chosen, you will stand alone in the face of each task. No one will come to your aid unless you ask them to, in which case you will forfeit the task. Good luck.’ We all watched the fire burn brighter and more red and spit out a piece of parchment. ‘The Champion from Beauxbatons Academy… Fleur Delacour.’ The entire table of Beauxbatons students erupted and everyone else clapped as a student with pale skin and long blonde hair, skipped up to Dumbledore. ‘And your mentor will be?’

‘Madam Maxime, Headmistress of Beauxbatons Academy.’ She said and everyone politely clapped.

‘It’s usually the Head of the school that is chosen.’ Benji told me. ‘But if you ask me, I’d rather have Angie watching my back, Dumbledore probably knows that as well.’ I just shook my head and laughed. I couldn’t be Jack’s mentor, I didn’t know anything about the tasks and I certainly didn’t know what to do to win. I looked at Jack and smiled. Delacour was shown into the champions room to wait further instructions.

The Goblet once again burnt bright red and spat out another piece of parchment, most of the students were either stretching or half standing to get a better look. ‘The champion from Durmstrang Institute… Viktor Krum.’ The hall cheered, Krum was the best seeker in the world and had a much better chance at winning than most. He strode over to Dumbledore and shook hands. ‘And you mentor will be?’

‘Igor Karkaroff, Headmaster of Durmstrang Institute.’ The wizards of Durmstrang all cheered and everyone once again politely clapped.

‘Who are you going to choose?’ I asked Jack, he frowned smiling.

‘If I’m chosen, I’d obviously pick you.’ He said. ‘But we all know who it’ll be.’

‘Jack, be reasonable, it’s going to be you. You’ve got more talent than me, I’m smart, but I haven’t got a clue.’ I told him and there was a real confusion to his expression that I hadn’t seen before.

‘Angie-‘ he said, but I never heard the end of sentence because the fire had burnt red again and another champion had been chosen.

‘The champion from Hogwarts School is… Angelina Lockwood.’ The rest of the school erupted and I looked to Jack who just sighed.

‘Of course it’d be you.’ He said. ‘Now get up and choose a mentor.’ Jack forced me to my feet and began cheering loudly, he held up my hand as if I’d already won. ‘Go.’ He said and I felt a nervousness in the pit of my stomach. ‘You got this Angie!’ He shouted and I felt a small rush of confidence, like we were showing off again. I threw my hands up and bowed to the crowd, before turning to Dumbledore and shaking his hand.

‘Choose carefully.’ Dumbledore whispered. ‘And you mentor will be?’ The whole Hall went quiet and I thought for just a split second before catching Lupin’s eye.

‘Professor Lupin, Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher for Hogwarts School.’ There was a moment of silence before I could hear my friends getting the crowd of people going and clapping and cheering again.

‘A wise choice.’ Dumbledore said, as he indicated that I go towards the champions room. I left waving to the crowd as I did.

We waited together in the Hogwarts trophy room for our instructions and I could see Darren’s photo in one of the cabinets. I smiled to myself as I stared down at my eleven-year-old brother. The door swung open and Maxime, Karkaroff, Lupin, Dumbledore and Crouch entered.

‘Well done.’ Crouch said and stared at us all. ‘You have been chosen by the Goblet of Fire to represent your school in what will be a gruelling test of skill, courage and wit. We have let you all choose a mentor who will be the only people able to help you during the tournament, this is the first year we have allowed this happen and it is because death is a very real possibility. We do not wish that upon any champion, I hope you have all made wise choices.’ Crouch nodded and turned to Dumbledore. ‘Now, let me tell you what’s next.’ Crouch had proceeded to perform the wand ceremony that would determine if our wands were in working order, he had then told us any extra rules, like the fact that the only thing we could have on us during the tasks was our wands.

We stayed for another few hours before we were allowed to leave, by which time Lupin had invited me up to his office the following day to discuss preparations. ‘I’m sure there is a celebration waiting for you in the Common Room tonight Angelina.’ He smiled down at me and I could see the last of his cuts healing over.

‘Professor, you weren’t hunting dragons in the summer were you?’ I asked, just as we got outside the Great Hall. ‘That’s what everyone’s saying about your hand and your cuts.’

Lupin sighed. ‘Well, it’s not entirely false, I had an encounter with three dragons actually. But I wasn’t hunting them and it’s not how I got these cuts. We’ll talk about it tomorrow after classes, go and celebrate with your friends tonight and enjoy what could be the last good night you’ll have for a while.’

I just watched him for a moment, before nodding and heading up to Gryffindor Tower where a huge celebration waited for me. I was lifted high above everyone and we drank and sang the night away the way we should have done at our age.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that the ages don't quite match up, but instead of making up a set of new characters, I thought it best to stick with the ones we all know and love :)


	28. The First Task

The whole school was talking about the tournament and it took me twice as long to get to my classes as everyone kept congratulating me and asking me questions about my choice for mentor. I eventually made it to my last class which was Defence Against the Dark Arts and I was ten minutes late, running into the classroom and apologising.

‘It’s quite alright, take your seat.’ Lupin said and I sat down next Jack who just laughed and shook his head.

‘Shut up.’ I whispered, but couldn’t help my own smile. Lupin took the class and I spent most of it working on my potions essay, given that I already knew what Lupin was talking about. ‘Lupin wants me to stay and talk about the tournament.’ I told Jack.

‘Okay, well I’ll see you at dinner yeah?’ He nodded as we packed away our things. ‘Why did you choose Lupin anyway? Why not Dumbledore?’

‘Tactics right?’ I winked and headed up to Lupin’s desk. Jack just laughed and left with everyone else.

‘Tea?’ Lupin offered and we headed up to his office, where he threw down a stack of papers on his desk. I sat down in one of this comfy armchairs next to the fireplace.

‘Sorry I was late.’ I apologised again.

‘It’s quite alright,’ Lupin said settling opposite me. ‘I imagine it’s something I’ll have to get used to this year. Though I would suggest you find a quick response you can give people to get to your classes quicker.’

‘I’ll try.’ I chuckled as he handed me one of the teacups. ‘I’m sorry I didn’t reply to your letter in the summer, I got distracted with my results and a lot of things just fell by the wayside.’

‘It’s fine, I wasn’t really expecting to be able to read a reply anyway.’ Lupin sighed. ‘Truthfully it went better than expected, I was in Gloustershire for most of the summer, a small group of wizards needed my attention.’

I frowned.

‘That article you showed me last Christmas, the one about the muggle hunts, you remember?’ I nodded. ‘Darker and darker times are upon us and recently the minister has enlisted the help of certain individuals, Dumbledore is one of them, that’s one of the reasons I wanted to be your mentor. Your safety is very important to us and knowing that the Tournament was coming, he wouldn’t have had the time to keep you alive and help the minister. It’s in everyone best interests that you take any advice I give you. These tasks are not designed to be easy, not by a long shot and very few people can pass them as easily as a normal exam.’ 

‘Is the first task dragons by any chance?’ I asked, sipping my tea. Lupin just laughed.

‘Yes, it is.’

‘You let the rumour spread, because it’s more useful for the champions to work out the first task than to let people find out the real reason you were hurt?’

‘Exactly.’ Lupin smiled. ‘I’m not so sure you’re going to need my help Angelina.’ He mused to himself. ‘However, we will need to discuss how you’re going to battle a dragon.’

‘Yeah, I’m starting to think showing off isn’t going to cut it.’ I admitted and leaned back, thinking about what I knew about dragons. ‘Any idea what kind of dragon?’ I asked and Lupin seemed to have that same intense look he would have on occasion.

‘Three different types.’ He said, looking into his tea cup and clearing his throat. ‘One is a Chinese Fireball, one a Common Welsh Green and the third is a Hungarian Horntail… the third wasn’t originally supposed to come, but the Swedish Short-Snout they had fell ill and the Horntail was all they had in reserve. Best of luck to whoever gets that one.’

‘Speaking of snouts,’ I said, thinking on something from the summer. ‘I read that book in the summer-'

‘Hairy Snout, Human Heart,’ Lupin interrupted. ‘Yes, I’m sorry I didn’t get back to you on it. But the book was anonymously written and even if I did know the author, I expect he would not want his name thrown around in connection with that book, revealing that he is a werewolf.’ Lupin definitely knew more on the subject, but he seemed final on the matter so I didn’t question him any further. ‘Now, back to the dragons.’

I sat in Lupin’s office longer than I expected to, we talked about various ways of defending yourself against a dragon and decided to try out a few spells later in the month when we had more time. The first task was at the end of November and I was terrified of what was expected of me. Jack and I had put on a few more performances in the courtyard and even had a few friendly battles with the creatures we’d made from parchment, much to the amusement of the students surrounding us.

We had been sitting in the common room a week before the first task and I’d been reading up on conjuring spells and things that might’ve helped me fend off a dragon, when everyone announced they would be going to bed, leaving Jack and myself alone to study.

‘You ready for this?’ Jack asked. He had spread out over the entire sofa, while he read through his Transfiguration text book.

‘No.’ I sighed and closed the book, folding my arms behind me, so that my legs dangled off of one arm of the chair and my head rested on the other. It was surprisingly comfortable. ‘How do you fight a dragon?’

‘You could slay it with a sword.’ Jack chuckled.

‘Very funny. Lupin says that I have to retrieve something it’s guarding. Maybe I could distract it somehow and sneak around behind it?’ I suggested.

‘Yeah…’ Jack nodded, thinking. ‘You might have to kill it though.’ I looked at him as if he was mental. ‘Angie, it’s a real possibility. Anything can happen in these things and real people have actually died from not doing what they needed to, to survive.’

I watched Jack for a moment or two. ‘I’m going to bed; I need to rest.’ I got up and left Jack sitting alone in the common room. I knew he was right, but my point was that I still didn’t know how to kill a dragon and if it was the Horntail I was screwed, the scales were too thick to be pierced by anything I might’ve had to hand. I needed to keep practising the shield charm to keep myself safe from the fire and work out a way around the dragon.

All week people had been asking how I was going to kill the dragon and it was clear that the first task was no longer a secret between the champions. The entire school knew and were excited to see us battling dragons in a stadium away from the school for safety reasons. 

Lupin had led me into the champions tent where everyone was getting ready and was asking if I’d settled on a plan. 

‘No.’ I admitted, feeling the nervousness settle in the pit of my stomach. Lupin sighed and sat next to me and helped with my fireproof arm guards.

‘Well, just be prepared for the worst.’ He said and smiled. ‘You can do this. You’ve made speeches to the ministry, you’ve saved an entire race of people from immense pain… a dragon should be no problem.’

I laughed and padded my arm guards, adjusted them so they felt comfortable. ‘Right, I’m going to steal from a dragon… fighting it sounds less scary.’ I chuckled and made Lupin snigger as well.

‘Well, I’d suggest using the shield charm and the summoning charm to help get you through the defensive part. As for the retrieving… make sure you’ve got quick feet?’ Lupin smiled. I just rolled my eyes. ‘You’ll be fine, if you really get stuck then you send up red sparks and I’ll come and help you. You can do this Angelina; you can do anything you put your mind to.’ He assured me and his deep blue eyes settled me somewhat.

‘Champions!’ Crouch called and the three of us stood up, Lupin handed me my robe and I began tying up my hair, getting ready. Lupin stood with his hand on my shoulder, letting me know he was there. ‘Now we find out which dragon each of you will battle. Miss Lockwood, you are the hosting school and will go last, Mr Krum will go second and Miss Delacour, you may pick first.’ Crouch opened up a small black, silk bag and Fleur put her hand inside. There was a dark green dragon climbing her hand as she pulled it out. ‘The Common Welsh Green, very challenging. Mr Krum, you next.’ Krum pulled out a tiny red dragon that looked a little flighty. ‘The Chinese Fireball. And that leaves, Miss Lockwood,’ I knew what was coming before I even put my hand in that bag, I pulled out a black nasty looking dragon that just kept yelling and breathing harmless fire. ‘The Hungarian Horntail.’ I looked up at Lupin who, momentarily looked pained, but gave me a quick smile. ‘Good luck, to all.’ I noticed that Crouch lingered on me the longest and it didn’t put much confidence in me.

He left the tent and we all just looked at each other, feeling a little sorry for ourselves. It was suddenly abundantly clear what we had gotten ourselves into and a small part of me wanted to get out. 

Fleur went out first and I listened to the crowd making every noise under the sun, cheering finally and I let out a sigh of relief. Krum was next and I began pacing, swinging my arms and stretching to keep myself calm and ready. Lupin looked a little more nervous than I’d hoped he’d look. 

‘I can do this.’ I said and gradually began pumping myself up for the task.

‘You can.’ Lupin agreed. ‘I’ll keep saying it until you believe me. You are extraordinary and this is just one more thing that proves it to everyone else.’ The crowd cheered and it was my turn to go out and retrieve the item. Lupin stood and we waited for the cannon to go off, signalling my entrance. Lupin held me tight and sighed. ‘Just survive Angelina.’ He begged. ‘If all else fails, just survive.’ The cannon went off and Lupin pulled back. ‘I’ll be waiting for you at the exit tunnel on the other side. Make us all proud.’ Lupin gave me a wink and a smile and I took a deep breath, striding towards the entrance tunnel.

I could see the middle of the stadium and something gold glinting at me, that must’ve been what I needed to retrieve. The only problem was that I couldn’t see the dragon, the crowd was silent as I edged further into the stadium. My wand was up and I was desperately looking around for the dragon, until I saw a chain just next to the golden egg, it led upwards and my eyes followed it, finding the Horntail on the end of it. It was so much bigger than I’d anticipated, it took a deep breath and suddenly burning hot fire came straight towards me. I fell, but managed to get my wand up to cast the shield that stopped the fire reaching me, it did nothing for the heat though and it was unbearable.

Finally, the fire stopped and I took the opportunity to stand up and make a run at the egg, before remembering that its tail was a threat as well. It caught me square in the chest and knocked me to the other side of the stadium before I put my shield back up to stop another wave of fire coming at me. I could hear the crowd reacting, before suddenly feeling like this was just another performance in the courtyard. The fire stopped and I reached my wand out to the biggest rock I could find and forced it towards the dragon, knocking it off balance slightly. 

I made another run and once again got caught by the tail. I was even further away than the last time and immediately the shield went up to protect myself. I was terrified and obviously just running at the egg wasn’t going to work, I covered my face, panting heavily and feeling like I wanted to just cry. My ribs must’ve been shattered, I couldn’t breathe. I watched the dragon land over the egg and prepared for another wave of fire that sure enough came and tried to think of a plan. I wasn’t going to get very far with my ribs in the condition they were, I needed to bandage them up to keep them from piercing the skin.

As soon as the fire stopped I stood up and conjured some bandages to put around my ribs, lifting my wand to protect myself from the next wave of fire that didn’t last as long. I hit the ground to avoid another hit from the tail, but it’d caught part of my robes and dragged me into the air. I landed on its sharp spine and felt several of sharp thorns pierce my flesh, I screamed out. The dragon began to panic and I untied my robe and rolled off of its back, hitting the ground hard and still feeling a few of its thorns stuck in my arms and legs.

I could see the egg so close to where I was lying, but couldn’t quite reach it. The dragon flew upwards and sent yet another wave of fire my way. The shield was back up and I took the biggest thorn out of my thigh and screamed with the pain. The fire stopped and tail came in for another sweep, I rolled down to a lower level of the rocky nest it was protecting and felt the rubble hit every part of my body, until I was buried. I took a moment to breathe, just listening to where the dragon might’ve been, I didn’t dare move, not until I had a good shot.

Finally, the wing was just above me. I thrust the thorn up as hard as I could and soon I was drenched in blood as I stood up, watching the dragon fall away, trying to get the thorn out. I limped up to the egg and as soon as my hand was on it, the trainers burst out from every exit to put the dragon to sleep. I could hear the crowd roaring so loudly and stood, cradling the egg and feeling the blood and sweat dripping down my face.

I felt it, I felt the achievement inside of me. I was covered in dragon blood, my own sweat and just about every vulnerable part of my body had a thorn stuck inside it and I didn’t care. I could hear Lupin calling my name, but I just needed a minute. Just one minute to embrace this moment.

I looked at the dragon who was sleeping and being tended to and then looked up at the crowd; I lifted the egg high and screamed in celebration. I thrust my fist back and forth, letting everyone know just how good I was. ‘I am that good!’ I shouted and the crowd shouted back. I took one more moment and scanned the entire crowd, feeling so very good, before knowing that I really should look at getting the thorns taken out. 

Lupin and Jack were at the bottom of the rocky nest and I threw Jack the egg as I struggled down the hill, where Lupin caught me. Jack handed the egg back and I lifted it once more as Lupin carried me through the exit tunnel to get medical attention.

 

The familiar feeling of waking up in the hospital wing with an ache in my body and it was getting on my nerves.

‘She’s awake.’ I knew that voice.

‘Jack.’ I mumbled.

‘He’s gone to get Madame Pomfrey.’ Jocelyne said and I opened my eyes to see her familiar face.

‘How’d I do?’ I gave a small smile.

I heard a few people around me laughing. That was until Pomfrey got to me.

‘Still got your jokes Lockwood, here, you need to sit up and drink this.’ I found it surprisingly easy to sit up, at least it was a lot easier than it had been last time. I drank the murky looking potion without complaint and felt a lot better. ‘How’s that?’ Pomfrey asked and I nodded.

‘Better.’ I looked around and saw Lupin sitting just next to me and Jack on my other side with Jocelyne, David and Benji watching from the end of my bed. They were all still wearing their coats.

‘Well, you know the drill, a few more hours to make sure there’s no permanent damage and you’ll be free to go.’ I frowned slightly, usually I’d be kept in overnight. ‘What? You think I wasn’t told about the dragons? I’m well prepared for anything you three are going to throw at me. Lucky the other two only came away with burns and nothing else.’

I looked over to the other side of the hospital wing to see Krum and Fleur watching me and lifting their goblets in recognition. I nodded to them and began drinking yet another potion that Pomfrey had shoved into my hand. ‘Remus, you can stay, but I want the rest of you out within fifteen minutes. No arguments.’ I chuckled a little at her not taking any crap from my friends as she walked back to her office.

‘So… what did you guys get up to today?’ I asked and a small round of laughter erupted, even Lupin smiled a little.

‘That was amazing Angie.’ David said first. 

‘It was awesome!’ Jack corrected him.

‘You could have been killed, but I’m glad you weren’t.’ Jocelyne folded her arms, but there was still a smile on her face.

‘Remind me not to get on your bad side anymore.’ Benji laughed, he put his arm around Jocelyne, lightening her mood.

‘You were really good.’ Jack said, lifting the golden egg. ‘Any idea what it is?’

‘The next clue.’ Lupin said, his voice a little croaky. ‘The next clue is in there, your job is to work it out, you won’t be able to complete the next task if you don’t solve it.’

I looked at it curiously and tried to work out what clue could possibly be inside it. 

‘Right, we’ll get out of your hair.’ Jack announced standing up. ‘You need anything just now?’ I shook my head, still looking at the egg. ‘I can take that upstairs if you want? You might get out quicker if Pomfrey thinks you’re resting.’

‘Good idea.’ I chuckled and handed him the egg. ‘Take care of that.’ I reminded him and Jack began ushering everyone out reluctantly, leaving myself and Lupin alone to talk. ‘You don’t look happy.’ I noted as I leaned back against the pillows, feeling the ache. Someone had taken off my armour and I was left in just my thin jumper that had a lot of holes in it.

‘Happy is a strong word.’ He admitted. ‘I’m happy you survived, not so that you chose to show off at the end of the task and not seek attention for your injuries immediately.’

‘I just fought a dragon.’ I told him. ‘I can’t have a moment to celebrate that before I worry about anything else?’

‘You know full well what I’m saying.’ Lupin let a little of his anger slip. ‘You know that Horntails have poisonous thorns and you couldn’t have known that this one had been sterilised before you went into that stadium. You could have dropped down dead in the moment you chose to showboat.’

I watched him for a moment and suddenly felt bad for worrying him. ‘I’m sorry.’ I said, I hoped he could see I meant it.

Lupin sighed. ‘It’s fine, just don’t do it again, especially if you’re injured.’ He held the bridge of his nose. ‘I want you to do well in this tournament, but I wished you would have asked for my help as soon as you needed it.’

‘I didn’t need it, I had a plan.’

‘And that plan backfired.’ He reminded me, again letting his anger slip. It was starting to annoy me as well. ‘The rock did nothing to even slow it down and as a result you shattered your rib cage… I don’t enjoy seeing you in pain and I certainly don’t like hearing you screaming.’

‘Well… you’ll just have to get used to it.’ I was so angry at him that I barely cared about what I was saying. ‘This tournament is going to push me harder than ever before, I realise that now and you pretending like the possibility of me dying isn’t real, isn’t helping… you said I could do it, you told me you believed in me.’

‘And I do.’ Lupin went to touch my hand, before stopping himself and looking around the hospital wing. ‘I believe you can do anything you set your mind to, but I’m also allowed to be worried for you, I’m allowed to-‘ Lupin stopped himself and took a breath, like he was about to say something he’d regret. ‘To be concerned for your safety.’ He said it like he’d practiced it, like it wasn’t genuine. I just looked up at the ceiling and embraced the cold silence for a few moments. ‘I’m sorry.’ Lupin finally said. ‘I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be saying these things… you should be resting. Come and see me if you need any help with the egg.’ Lupin stood and wandered out of the hospital wing with his head hung low.


	29. Go With Filch?

No one was really sure why we had been gathered to the Great Hall, but we watched Filch set up a huge gramophone that looked ancient and we waited for Professor McGonagall to begin whatever it was we were supposed to be doing.

‘The Yule Ball,’ she began and the room went quiet. ‘Is a Triwizard tradition. It is first and foremost a dance.’ Most of the room groaned and slid down in their seats. ‘It is traditional for the champion to start us off at the Ball and lead the rest of the school in dance.’ The room turned to me and I just looked around for someone to help me.

‘Come on Lockwood,’ Jack stood up on the other side of the room. ‘What, you can fight off a dragon, but can’t do a little shimmy?’

I laughed along with everyone else and stood up slowly. ‘Well, if it’s a challenge Rathborne.’ Most people either giggled or simply egged us on. We squared up to each other and soon Jocelyne and Benji got up to back us up in front of the rest of the sixth and seventh years. David had stood up and maybe three or four of his Hufflepuff admirers stood up as well. I didn’t see who he eventually danced with, because McGonagall was teaching us the moves, Jack and I just kept laughing as we got it wrong a few times.

Eventually we were allowed to leave when we’d gotten at least the first six or seven steps right, the majority of us did and groaned again when we realised we needed to come back every week leading up to the Ball itself. What was even worse was that we’d have to find someone to go with and dance with like a date.

‘I’m sure you’ll be getting offers left, right and centre.’ Lupin chuckled, sipping his tea. ‘What about Jack?’

‘What about Jack?’ Lupin gave me a look I didn’t understand. ‘What?’

‘You’re the most intelligent person I’ve ever met and you can’t tell when someone is attracted to you.’ Lupin smiled, finding the whole thing very amusing.

‘I have no idea what you’re talking about. Jack and I have been friends since we were eleven.’

‘And now you’ve reached the age of sixteen and that’s traditionally the age where the opposite sex… intrigues you.’ Lupin was enjoying this a little too much, I raised my eyebrows at him. ‘You’re telling me there’s not a single boy at this school that you find attractive?’

‘I don’t know!’ I exclaimed. ‘I think lots of people are attractive, I recognise attractive people, but I don’t want to… you know, Jack is pretty good looking and Benji managed to get Jocelyne to be his girlfriend-‘ Lupin choked on his tea a little as he laughed. ‘David’s got a whole bunch of Hufflepuff girls that follow him around all the time and you would not believe some of the things I hear about you from the third year Ravenclaws, you would have thought some of them have actually had-‘

‘Okay,’ Lupin held his hand up to stop me speaking. ‘I really don’t want to know what they say about me.’ We both gave a small laugh. ‘Let’s get back to the topic at hand, the egg. Have you worked it out yet?’

‘No, I can’t even figure out how to listen to it.’ I sighed. ‘It just keeps screeching at me.’

‘Well, why don’t you take a bath and mull it over?’ Lupin said and sipped his tea. I frowned at him. ‘Take the egg with you and go think it over in the hot water… I’m giving you a clue, not just continuing our inappropriate conversation.’

I chuckled. ‘Ah, Lupin has returned. When did Remus leave?’ Lupin laughed a little. ‘So I need to listen to it in the water?’

‘Do you want me to be Remus or Professor Lupin when I answer?’

‘Will I get a different answer depending on who I choose?’

‘No.’ He smiled and there was something about his smile that I enjoyed. It was a little cheeky. ‘Take the egg, have a bath with it and let me know what your findings are… Also I’ve extended the deadline for the essay, just by a day.’

‘Why?’

‘Full moon on Thursday, I’d rather take the weekend to mark the papers anyway.’ Lupin sighed. ‘It’s nice, I almost forget it comes every month. Then I wake up aching and remember it’s only a few days away… Have I said thank you?’

I smiled and chuckled a little. ‘I don’t mind hearing it again.’

‘Thank you Angelina.’ He said sincerely and I just smiled at him. ‘Can I ask you a question?’ I frowned. ‘You don’t have to answer.’

‘I’ve asked you enough questions over the years, I’m sure I can give you one or two back.’ I leaned on my hand and waited for him to ask.

‘Do you tell anyone about our chats? Jack or Jocelyne?’ I shook my head, trying to remember a time where I’d given explicit details to anyone.

‘Not really. I tell them I talk to you, but I don’t really mention any details.’

‘Why?’

I shrugged. ‘I guess… it doesn’t seem important that they know. Like… these chats are ours and I place a lot of trust in you keeping my secrets, not that I have many, but I would never tell anyone your secrets. It’s hard to explain.’

Lupin nodded in understanding. ‘I would never stop you telling anyone every detail of these conversations, but I’m glad you feel the same about them as I do.’

I just smiled, before taking a breath. ‘Anyway, who’s Remus going to the Ball with?’

Lupin burst out laughing. ‘Who would go with me? Maybe Filch?’

‘Hey, if that’s what you’re into.’ I laughed and he gave me a look that said please. ‘How am I supposed to know this stuff? I can’t even tell if someone likes me… you could go with Trelawney?’

'And have her tell me all the ways I’m probably going to die this year?’ I couldn’t help my laugh; it was the same jokes we made about her.   
‘Sprout?’

‘I think she has a deal with Filius, any social events, they usually go together as friends.’ Lupin thought carefully.

‘McGonagall?’

‘You realise she taught me at school and that wasn't that long ago?’

‘Sorry, I forget how young you are sometimes.’ Lupin gave me a look. ‘I mean, because you sound wiser than twenty-what, six?’ Lupin nodded. ‘I can’t imagine dating someone who taught you is that weird anyway, if you like them who the hell cares… you do look your age these days though.’

‘Thank you, I’m glad. But it’s not going to get me a date for the Ball.’ Lupin winked and I just laughed.

‘Okay, I give up. Go with Filch if you want, but just let me know if you do and Jack and I will back you up on the dance floor.’ I stood and Lupin laughed. 

‘Noted.’ He stood and opened his office door for me to leave. ‘Good luck with the egg.’ He called as I began leaving the empty classroom.

‘Good luck with your date.’ I left him laughing to himself and went straight to grab dinner with everyone, telling them I was going to the prefect’s bathroom for a bath at some point that week.

 

I managed to listen to the clue and did a couple of laps of the bath that was far too large for any one person. The clue didn’t make much sense, until I realised how stupid I was being.

‘So there’s something of value at the bottom of the Black Lake?’ Jack asked. I’d found everyone in the common room studying for their assignments that were due just before the Ball.

‘Well, it might not be there just now, but when the second task commences it will be and my job will be to spend an hour searching for it and getting it back… I guess. I wrote the clue down.’ I handed him the parchment I’d written on and he passed it around, while I continued drying my hair with the towel around my neck.

‘Okay, so the obvious question is what’s the most valuable thing you have?’ Benji handed the note to David. I sat on the edge of the chair that Jack occupied and thought.

‘I don’t know, could be anything. Might not even be a thing, could be a creature I like or a person?’ I folded my arms and sighed. ‘Anyway, I’m going to bed, see you all tomorrow.’ I picked up the egg from the sofa and headed up the stairs where Jack had run after me and caught up on the landing.

‘Angie wait.’ I turned to see him, I swallowed thickly. ‘I just… I wanted to ask if anyone had asked you to the Ball yet?’

‘A few people.’ I nodded. ‘You ask anyone yet?’

‘No.’ He looked a little disappointed. ‘I was actually going to ask you, but if you’re already going with someone-‘

‘I didn’t say yes to any of them. Jeez Jack, most of them were fourth years.’ I chuckled and it made him smile. 

‘So, if I ask will you say yes?’ Jack held his breath for just a moment.

‘Sure, I guess. I mean who else is going to be able to keep up with my conversation?’ It made him laugh and he ran his hand through his thick blonde hair.

‘Okay, so we’re going together and that’s that?’ He made sure.

‘Yeah…’ I suddenly remembered what Lupin had said about Jack being attracted to me. ‘Erm… are you, I mean, do you like…?’

‘Do I like you as more than a friend?’ He finished my sentence and I nodded. ‘I think I do, yeah.’ He smiled and I could see his attractiveness, I could see he was a good looking guy and I had a lot of fun with him. Maybe that was what attraction was? Thinking someone was good looking and having fun with them, it made sense.

‘Okay, just checking.’ I said and did an awkward thing where I kind of turned, but wasn’t sure if he was done talking, but then turned again and went to bed. That was weird.


	30. The Yule Ball

The Ball was that evening and Jack and I had spent a little more time together, mostly studying, but also talking about the task. We were researching the Merpeople and trying to work out what they were going to take from me. Jocelyne and Jack had swapped seats in most classes and Lupin noticed in DADA, I thought I saw an expression I didn’t recognise, but I knew I’d seen it before on someone else. Jack and I had been showing off in the courtyard again, making ice sculptures for people and generally just laughing with each other, it began to feel a little different though. Like he really was more than just a friend.

Jocelyne had told me what it felt like when she was around Benji and I was already confused.

‘You know, when you’re near him, you just want to touch him, so you hold his hand?’ She said and I had no idea what she was talking about. ‘Well, maybe you’re just not there yet? I was terrified to hold Benji’s hand, let alone kiss him or anything else.’

‘Anything else?’ I saw the look of disbelief before I realised what was coming. ‘I don’t want to know.’ I stopped her before she began explaining what she meant and I was suddenly reminded of Lupin’s reaction in his office and it made me smile a little.

We continued getting ready for the Ball and Jocelyne helped me do my hair and makeup, I didn’t wear it that often and this seemed to be a special night for everyone, so I didn’t want to mess it up. ‘You know I’m seventeen in a few months?’ I suddenly said.

‘Yeah?’ Jocelyne handed me the mascara.

‘I feel older than everyone else, like, a lot older.’

‘Well… it’s because you are.’ Jocelyne just laughed and I forgot that she was a summer child as were Benji and David. Jack was just before me and truthfully it didn’t make much of a difference, it just felt like seventeen was a big number, that’s when you became an adult, a real life grown up with responsibilities. I shook my head and took a deep breath.

‘Come on. Benji and Jack are waiting outside the Hall.’ I said, carrying my shoes that no one would catch me running down the stairs in.

‘Oh Angie, you look hot!’ Jocelyne said and made me do a twirl in my red floor length dress, it had a slit up the side and showed off a little leg. ‘You hit puberty hard.’

‘Oh shut up, come on.’ I laughed and we got to the bottom of Gryffindor Tower, having been wolf whistled one too many times by the third years, we just rolled our eyes and kept talking about the Weird Sisters playing that night, we slipped on our shoes and wandered down to the Great Hall.

We turned the corner and tried to see Jack and Benji who were at the bottom of the stairs, I’d never seen Jack look at me the way he did at that moment. It was the way my dad looked at my mum when she was wearing a nice dress. 

‘Red suits you.’ He said when I’d finally made it to the bottom of the stairs. I could see Benji and Jocelyne making out just next to us and we both just rolled our eyes. ‘M’lady.’ He laughed and bowed offering his arm as we entered the Great Hall to start the dancing. ‘Do you remember the moves?’ He suddenly said.

‘No, I’m following you.’ I panicked and the music began, we just started watching Krum and Fleur and just ran with whatever we knew. Eventually everyone else joined in and it was ten times scarier that fighting a dragon.

‘Well, thanks.’ Jack said as we managed to get away from the dancing couples who were either making out disgustingly or being awkward and embarrassing. ‘You want a drink?’ Jack said as we sat down at a table, just laughing at some of the awkwardness we could see.

‘Sure.’ I nodded.

‘Be right back.’ Jack stood up and left his jacket behind. I watched everyone dancing when I felt someone sit the other side of me. I turned to see Lupin slouching in his chair like a teenager and watching them curiously as well, he was wearing his familiar dark blue shirt and Green-grey jacket, but also wore a bow tie the same colour as his jacket.

‘Well, don’t you look dapper.’ I said, laughing at the face he pulled. ‘Nice bow tie and everything.’

‘Thanks, of course you look very beautiful. Jack is a lucky man.’ There was that expression again.

‘What is that?’ I thought I asked it quietly, but Lupin definitely heard me.

‘What’s what?’ He frowned.

‘You keep making that face and I don’t what it is.’ I turned to face him.

‘It’s nothing, best leave it alone.’ He had a sincerity that I had to respect.

‘Okay, but I’m only dropping it because I trust you.’ Lupin gave me a tight smile. ‘So, where is Filch anyway?’

Lupin chuckled a little. ‘Turns out Mrs Norris beat me to it.’ He pointed to the door way, where Filch was swaying with his cat. 

‘Maybe next time?’ I laughed. ‘So, who did you end up asking?’

‘No one.’ Lupin shook his head. ‘I considered asking if Clara fancied it, but she’s busy with work.’

‘She’s at the ministry isn’t she?’ Lupin nodded. ‘Well done her.’

‘Absolutely, she’s doing very well for herself. I helped her find a decent apartment in Diagon Alley a few months ago and she’s very happy with it.’ I could see Lupin thinking on his old friend.

‘You should have asked her to come.’ I said, watching the couples dance. ‘It would’ve been nice to see her all dressed up, she’s very beautiful.’

‘She is.’ Lupin nodded and smiled. ‘Red looks good on you.’ Lupin smiled gently and I thought I saw something I wasn’t quite sure of. 

‘Stealing my date Professor?’ Jack joked as he sat back down and laughed.

‘I would never.’ Lupin smiled, but it wasn’t a smile I was used to seeing. ‘Just keeping her company until you got back. Can’t have our Champion looking lonely, can we?’ Lupin stood up and wandered away. Jack slid a butterbeer over to me and we slipped back into joking around and laughing and for a while I completely forgot about what I’d seen in Lupin.

The night rolled on and we danced and we felt the buzz and the four of us left to head back to the tower, with David eventually turning up with lipstick stains all over his face. He looked very happy with himself and slumped down in one of the chairs, we all just laughed at him and Benji and Jack shook his hand giving a little bow. Soon though, it was time to actually go to bed and Jack had walked me up to the top of the stairs, it was fairly late and most people had already gone to bed.

‘Angie.’ He said quietly. ‘I don’t want to push my luck or make you do anything, but can I kiss you good night? I’ve never kissed anyone before and I always wanted you to be my first after a great night out. I’ve had a pretty good night, I think you have too, so what do you say?’

‘You’ve never kissed anyone before?’ I asked and we laughed a little. ‘I don’t know. I’ve never really done this before and I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.’

‘In case you hadn’t noticed, I’m kind of making this up as I go along as well.’ He gave that bashful laugh and again ran his hand through his hair. 

‘Okay, no harm in just going for it right?’ I said rather nervously.

‘Absolutely not.’ Jack took a step towards me and I could tell we were both as nervous as each other. He gently placed his hands either side of my face and I closed my eyes, feeling his lips press against mine. It was a strange feeling and not what I thought it would be like, it was warm and soft with hardly any pressure, he pulled away and looked down at me. ‘Good night.’ He smiled and I just smiled back at him. I turned around and went upstairs to my bed, thinking about why it didn’t feel like Jocelyne said it felt like with Benji.

 

Christmas was soon over and Jack and I remained in this strange limbo for the next month or so, where we didn’t dare make a move the other wasn’t comfortable with. We talked about it and we both agreed that it was probably just first kiss nerves and probably why it didn’t feel the way it should have done, we both just needed practice and a lot of tips. Something David seemed to be something of an expert in.

Jack and I had been waiting outside the DADA classroom when we saw a second year flying across the corridor just next to us. We went over to him immediately to see if he was okay, but before we could get to him, Karkaroff had pulled him up by his robes and was yelling at him for one reason or another. I reacted before Jack, but the both of us sent spells at Karkaroff. Jack bent down to see if he was okay and I held my wand up to Karkaroff who slowly got to his feet. He began laughing, I heard the door to the classroom open and knew I’d be in big trouble with Lupin.

‘It’s nothing, just a little misunderstanding.’ Karkaroff took a couple of steps towards us.

‘Lockwood.’ Lupin roared and ran over to me, seeing Karkaroff and realising what must have happened.

‘It didn’t look like a misunderstanding.’ I said through gritted teeth, I wasn’t putting my wand down for any reason. ‘Looked like you attacking a student, a Hogwarts student.’

‘You know, if we were at Durmstrang, there is no way you’d get away with this.’

‘We’re not at Durmstrang!’ I yelled and took a few steps forward before Lupin caught my shoulder. ‘We don’t attack each other at Hogwarts, you have a problem with a student you go to the head of house and let them deal with it.’

‘Let your teachers deal with it?’ Karkaroff said with a hint of amusement. ‘You’re your own evidence to say that doesn’t work. Your mentor can’t even control you right now.’

‘Professor Lupin is the only thing that’s stopping me from sending you flying across the entire school!’ I snapped and Lupin tightened his grip.

‘Lower your wand.’ Lupin said, squeezing my shoulder gently and as much as I didn’t want to, I lowered it.

‘You had better hope I don’t hear of this happening again. If I do, Professor Lupin might not be around to save you.’ I felt the growl in the centre of my chest and it must’ve done something because Karkaroff’s face changed, he backed away just a step.

‘Jack, get him to the hospital wing.’ Lupin said, still not letting go of my shoulder. ‘Angelina, get inside the classroom, sit down and say nothing.’

‘Yes sir.’ Without skipping a beat, I walked into the DADA classroom and left Lupin to deal with Karkaroff. I didn’t dare say a word to Lupin for the entire lesson. Jack had eventually sat down beside me, but he didn’t say a word either. The class was dismissed and Jack and I looked at each other, wondering if it meant us as well.

‘Angelina, Jack, my office.’ He said, just as we got to the end of the desks. We gave each other a look that said we were definitely in big trouble. Lupin was already half way up the stairs by the time we began following. We stood at his desk for a few moments while he took his teaching robe off and settled down at his desk, shuffling a few things around, he was really taking his time with this. ‘Karkaroff, is not a man you want to annoy too often.’ Lupin finally said. ‘Angelina, you remember what I told you I did during the summer?’

I nodded.

‘Well, who do you think gave me the one on my neck?’ He said and pointed to a scar that was only just visible. I looked at Jack who just looked confused. ‘When you leave here you can tell Jack what I was doing, what I want to tell you is something no student knows, but given the fact that you’ve made him angry I think it’s important that you do know… Karkaroff is a Death Eater.’ My heart sank and still Jack looked confused.

‘A what?’ Jack said.

‘The worst kind of Dark Wizard.’ I explained. ‘But the ministry are catching more and more of them, why can’t we just turn him in?’

‘Because, he’s not active, we can’t technically prove he’s done anything wrong.’ Lupin sighed. ‘Believe me, as soon as I heard he was coming, I’ve been waiting for him to slip up and convince Dumbledore that he should not be allowed near any student no matter what school they go to… but it’s difficult when he knows of my condition and has chosen to stay quiet on the matter.’

‘He’s got leverage over you.’ Jack had started putting the pieces together.

‘He’s got other pieces of information that could ruin me, but of them all, that’s the one I’d keep to myself above the rest.’ Lupin suddenly looked so much older, like he was tired of fighting and just wanted to sleep for the rest of his life. ‘I don’t want you two picking any more fights with Karkaroff, Durmstrang students are dangerous anyway, the school actually practices Dark Magic, but Karkaroff no longer knows what good magic is.’

‘You mean he can’t produce things like a patronus?’ Jack seemed more and more interested in the subject.

‘One of many things he’s given up the ability to do in order to serve his master.’ Lupin leaned back in his chair. ‘Just promise me, you’ll both think twice before confronting him again.’

‘Yes sir.’ Jack said and I nodded when Lupin gave me a look.

‘Jack, I’d like to speak with Angelina about her next task, she’ll see you at dinner.’ Lupin said without taking his eyes off me. Jack just nodded and hugged me before he left.

‘How’s the task coming along?’ Lupin tried to take my attention away from what he had been saying.

‘Solved it a month ago.’ I cleared my throat. ‘The Merpeople are going to take something and I have to get it back within an hour otherwise it’ll be gone forever.’

‘Do you know what they’re going to take?’

‘No, could be anything.’ This really wasn’t what I wanted to talk about.

‘I take it you’ll be using the bubble head charm?’ Lupin was pushing his questioning a little too hard.

‘Yes, I’m well practised by now.’

‘Are you preparing for some of the things you might encounter?’

‘Yes, yes, I’m doing all of that!’ I snapped.

‘What are you doing?’

‘Why does it matter? I already know what’s down there, I know how to breathe underwater for an hour and I know where the Merpeople live, I’ll improvise like I did last time.’

Lupin stood up and just about towered over me. ‘And that is why I’m questioning you like this. You cannot possibly hope to survive if you don’t have some kind of plan going into it.’

‘My plan backfired last time, you know it did you saw it happen and I could’ve been killed by persisting with it, I improvised and did what I needed to do in order to survive.’ I’d never been so frustrated with Lupin before. 

‘I am trying to protect you.’ Lupin said quietly and I suddenly felt for him.

‘I know.’ I nodded and leaned back against the wall. ‘I know, I’m just… I’m going through a lot just now.’

‘With Jack?’ Lupin frowned. ‘Everything okay?’

‘Yeah, it’s fine, it’s Jack,’ I smiled. ‘It just isn’t what everyone said it would be… who am I talking to right now?’

Lupin just chuckled and shrugged. ‘I don’t know that there’s much of a difference these days, you don’t seem to listen to either of us… what do you need right now? A teacher or a friend?’

‘I always need a friend.’ I smiled. ‘I’ll come up with a plan, I’ll practice spells I probably won’t even use in my life time and I’ll prepare for the task, I promise.’

‘Good and remember not to go picking any more fights.’ Lupin sat back down in his seat. 

‘Yes, sir.’ I nodded and left Lupin’s office, feeling notably calmer and much less tense than when I had entered it.


	31. Thank You For Being My Friend

The second task was upon me, it was the end of February and I’d had a frustrating month, Valentine’s day had been something of a big deal to everyone except myself and Jack. We decided that maybe we should have called it quits for a while, at least until the tournament was over and we could both focus on our studies and on being the school’s biggest source of entertainment. 

Lupin had met up with me outside the Great Hall. Jocelyne, Benji and David had all gone down to the Lake early to get a good seat, it was freezing outside and I couldn’t think of anything worse than sitting by the Lake in the freezing temperatures, except perhaps actually entering the water. Jack was nowhere to be seen and someone said he was last seen with Madame Pomfrey, maybe he was ill.

‘I’m sure he’ll be fine.’ Lupin said, guiding me towards the Lake. ‘Just concentrate on the task, finish as soon as you can and remember to just survive.’

‘Jack never gets sick and even when he does it’s just a cold.’ I said, turning back to see if he was staggering out of the castle, no such luck. 

‘Angelina, you need to focus.’ Lupin reminded. ‘Jack will be fine, just focus.’ He gave me a look that placed that focus inside me and I nodded as I stepped into the boat with the other champions.

We managed to get to the stands safely and Dumbledore made his announcements that we would be followed by monitoring devices that would keep an eye on the action and display it for the crowd. I could see mine floating around beside my head and stuck my tongue out, laughing as I did. Lupin just shook his head, but said nothing.

I took my warm robe off and fastened my wand to my leg, I noticed the Lionfish scar just beneath it and remembered to watch out for them. The air was freezing and my tight vest and small shorts weren’t helping anything, I caught Lupin staring out at the Lake, his cheeks a little pink, at least someone was warm. I could see Benji and David yelling loudly when my name was called and I decided to put on a show for everyone, I began climbing the ladder to the third tier of the floating stands and received a warm welcome, Lupin didn’t even bother trying to stop me.

‘Mind of her own.’ He said as I climbed up higher, I looked down and gave him a wink that made him smile and shake his head. 

The cannon sounded and I winked at the device as it dove under the water, before running and leaping off the edge of the platform and howled loudly as I span around and entered the freezing water. I quickly performed the bubble head charm and took a deep breath as soon as I could. Krum had already entered before me and Fleur would be next, I began swimming towards where I knew the Merpeople’s village was. On occasion the monitoring device would float by me and I would either wink or pull a face.

I could see the Grindylows nest, but curiously no Grindylows. I began swimming a little faster and saw a flock of Lionfish heading straight towards me, I swam downwards, knowing that they preferred the slightly warmer temperatures of the Lake and watched them swim above me.

My leg got wrapped in vines and as I was trying to free myself the Grindylows swarmed me and began biting and clawing at my skin, I couldn’t reach my wand and I could feel the biting and scratches getting deeper and deeper. Eventually, I grabbed at my wand and stunned them all at the same time, so that they just floated around in the water around me. I took a breath and untied my leg. Pushing off from a nearby rock towards the village, my skin began to sting slightly with the water seeping into the cuts, but I just kept swimming.

I saw the Merpeople guarding what looked like three bodies tied to rocks. Before I knew what was happening two of the Merpeople dragged me through the water towards what was presumably the leader. She had a nasty set of teeth and inspected my wounds.

‘You will not survive the trip back.’ She said and I just frowned. ‘You’ve lost too much blood.’

‘I’m pretty resilient.’ I said and swam towards the body I recognised as Jack. He looked dead, but surely not, probably just an induced sleep. I saw the monitoring device circling and I decided to have a little fun while I was there. I pulled out my wand and winked to the device, casting a charm on Jack to make him suddenly grow a beard. I pressed my finger to my lips and cut him loose.

I checked the time and the other two bodies were still there, I could see Krum being brought over to the Merpeople leader and he looked pretty much unscathed. ‘Where’s Fleur?’ I asked, he just shrugged and took his body up to the surface. Fleur could have been in trouble and the body of what looked like her sister was still there. I could feel my own body growing just a little weaker as I began losing more and more blood. ‘Sorry Jack, you’ll have to make the trip without me.’ I said and found his wand, using the sea weed to tie it to his hand, I cast a spell that would send him straight to the surface while I went and looked for Fleur.

Another swarm of Grindylows had already found her, I stunned them all again and saw that she was barely conscious. I swam over to her, feeling that sting and feeling my body weaken even further. I grabbed her to see if she was still conscious.

‘Come on Fleur, we need to get your sister out of here.’ I said and it seemed to bring her partially back. I began helping her towards the village, but I needed to get to the surface as quickly as I could, the Merpeople were right, I wouldn’t survive the trip back at this rate. I sent her over to her sister, but she was fading fast. I was about to fire myself towards the surface when I saw her sink down to the rock her sister was tied to. I momentarily thought about leaving her, but I couldn’t be certain that someone would rescue her in time. ‘Damn it!’

I swam as fast as I could over to her, seeing the monitoring devices flashing red, our hour was close to being up. 

‘Fleur, wake up, you need to get your sister out of the water.’ I shouted as loud as I could, but everything was becoming more and more of an effort. Again she began to come back and I took the opportunity to cut her sister loose and once again tie them together and tie her wand to her hand, sending them up to the surface. I could feel myself fading though, it was a step too far. I remembered my promise to Lupin. I just had to survive, I just had to get to the surface. I realised that I would have to break one promise to keep the other, my wand was back strapped to my leg and I didn’t have the energy to get it or to speak anymore.

I thought hard about what I wanted to do and before I knew what was happening, the hard wooden floor of the stand was slamming against my body, I groaned out and Madame Pomfrey was the first to me, pouring a strange liquid onto all of my wounds, they began healing and I could feel myself waking up a little more as a result. 

I finally found myself able to sit up and Lupin wrapped a warm towel around my shoulders. I looked over at Jack who was watching me with his own towel wrapped around him and stroked his beard thoughtfully. I just laughed and caught my breath, falling back against Lupin and staring out at the Lake. 

Fleur had come over to thank me for helping her get her sister back and it was a little overwhelmingly friendly, but I just laughed and appreciated it. That’s when I caught Lupin’s face, it was a strange combination of relief and pain.

‘I’m sorry.’ I said quietly as he helped me to stand up. ‘I used wandless magic.’

Lupin just let out a small laugh. ‘I’m not angry about that.’ He shook his head. ‘But, I’m starting to think I can’t be angry at all. I can’t stop you from enjoying yourself and if showing off and putting beards on your friends whilst in the middle of mortal danger keeps you going, then I guess I’ll have to live with it.’

I looked up at him as we waited for the results. ‘I could give you a proper beard as well.’ We looked at each other for a moment before bursting out laughing. ‘I survived though, that’s something.’

‘That’s all I wanted.’ He winked at me and put yet another warm towel around my shoulders. The results were in and I came second, Krum was first and I was given more points for helping Fleur when I didn’t need to and for saving my own person. I hugged Jack and I felt the towels fall down.

‘Do you like swimming?’ I whispered to Jack.

‘Don’t you dare.’ He said and immediately I pushed him back in the water. ‘Damn it Lockwood.’ He said, laughing swimming back to the edge of the stand. I went to pull him back up, but he pulled me back into the water and I resurfaced laughing. Everyone was cheering for us and laughing at our antics. Jack pulled me up and lifted my hand to the crowd and I felt good. I was freezing cold and in need of a fire, but I felt good that I had survived again.

Jack, Lupin and I got the boat back to shore and began talking about what Lupin had seen. ‘Everyone was understandably worried when we saw the Grindylows just behind you and I was a little concerned that Lionfish would get you again, but you did the right thing in diving into colder temperatures, though I expect Madame Pomfrey will want to check you’re okay when we get back.’ Lupin said.

‘I have a question that no one seems to be asking.’ Jack said, shivering and putting his hand up a little. ‘Who’s going to get rid of the beard?’ I just laughed and shrugged.

‘Guess you’ll have to live with it.’ I said and Lupin chuckled pulling out his own wand and dealt with the beard. ‘Bet you’re feeling the cold now.’ I said and Jack just nodded and curled into his towel. I laughed and looked over to the Quidditch pitch where the last task would take place.

‘The maze.’ Lupin said thoughtfully, he’d caught me staring and just gave me a sympathetic smile. ‘I’m afraid that’s the one task I can’t help you with. I can answer your questions and I can teach any spell you wish to learn, but you’ll be on your own for this one.’ Lupin sighed. ‘But that’s a few months away just yet, I expect Gryffindor Tower will be celebrating tonight and you should take this time to do the same.’

I just smiled, knowing that I should be happy, but there was something about the maze that unsettled me, something that I didn’t want to have anything to do with.

 

Lupin was right, the Tower celebrated well into the night and I woke up with the same dull ache I was used to after an exhausting day. In the following months I’d decided to go to the library as often as I could to complete my essays. I picked up a hundred different books on magical creatures and how to battle them and flicked through, knowing most of what was in most of them, but checking the odd one out here and there and making a few notes. 

I’d gone to Lupin just about every Saturday afternoon, except when there was a full moon, and began learning more complex spells as well as going over what I already knew. It was rigorous and often ended up with us laughing and eating chocolate on the steps of his classroom. I’d come of age in the April and I’d told Lupin how old I felt.

‘Well, wait until you get to twenty-seven and then we’ll talk.’ He laughed, handing me another piece of chocolate as we settled on the steps. ‘Now, what else do you have at your disposal?’

‘I’m animagus, I can use that to get out of tight spots pretty fast.’ I thought.

‘Yes, but remember that animals react differently to certain creatures. They have a limited emotional capacity and are less susceptible to creatures such as dementors. I don’t expect you’ll encounter any dementors, it’s possible, but other non-beings find it hard to manipulate animals, so it’s worth bearing it in mind.’

‘Animals can’t be possessed?’ I asked and Lupin frowned.

‘They can, it just takes a little longer to tap into the strongest emotion and take control of it.’ Lupin said carefully. ‘Some dark creatures can’t do it at all. Animals, especially wolves, have a need to survive and that’s not an emotion, it’s instinct, it’s in their nature. I’d suggest exploiting that where you need to the most.’

We spent a little longer talking about the type of creatures I might encounter and I had made a small list of things to do extra research on in the library.

One morning at breakfast, Ruben had dropped an abnormally large stack of letters down in front of me. It was maybe a week before the last task and the pressure was on, the school work had piled up and everyone had begun placing bets on whether I’d die or not and the ways in which I would die. It was funny up until the point where I realised I could in fact die in every way mentioned, I had no idea what was in that maze and I could be killed by anything in any way possible.

The letters were mostly people wishing me luck and hoping I did well. My parents said that both they and Darren would be there cheering me on for the final task and it gave me a small lift. Another was from the ministry, confirming that I would be giving another speech at the rights campaign during the summer, I’d given Jack a look and he just laughed and winked. The third letter was one I really wished I hadn’t opened.

Angie,

I’m sorry to write to you in these circumstances, but I’m afraid it would be cruel to wait any amount of time to tell you. Doris and Julian wrote to you during the summer, letting you know that they were struggling with the everyday lives they were leading. I’m sure they told you they were dealing with it and hoped life would get better, but I’m sorry to inform you that it didn’t. Their bodies were found yesterday evening at their home, they poisoned themselves and left a note stating why they couldn’t live with themselves any longer.

If you are interested in reading the note, I will of course send it to both yourself and Remus as soon as you ask. But I would warn that it contains details I myself couldn’t bear the thought of. I have sent a similar letter to Remus and hope you both find solace in each other during this difficult time.

Once again I am so sorry to give you this news just before the biggest challenge of your life, but I feel it was the right thing to do. Good luck in the final task.

Always in your debt.

Clara

I looked up at Jack who frowned at me. I felt myself turn to Lupin who was already out of his seat and striding over to me. ‘Angie are you alright?’ Jack asked.

‘Let’s go.’ Lupin said, I could hear the tension in his voice. I handed the letter to Jack and stood, feeling dead on my feet. Lupin led me out of the Great Hall and I felt the anger beginning to build under my skin. Every part of me grew tenser and I could barely control myself by the time I got to Lupin’s classroom.

He let me walk up and down the desks for a moment, trying to make sense of what had happened, but it didn’t make sense. They were gone, they were no longer here and it was my fault.

‘I didn’t make it strong enough.’ I said and Lupin took a couple of steps towards me. ‘They were still in pain, they still hurt!’ I couldn’t really control my voice anymore and leaned on one of the desk.

‘Angelina.’ Lupin said quietly. I didn’t want to look at him, I felt the tears fall hot and fast and I couldn’t stop them.

‘I couldn’t help them.’ I whined. ‘I couldn’t save them… I couldn’t save them!’ I shouted and slammed my fists down onto the desks until I couldn’t feel my hands anymore. Lupin had been there as soon as I needed him, he wrapped his arms around me and I felt myself fall into his chest, as we slid down to the floor, crying hard and still not being able to stop.

‘I know,’ he said against my head. ‘I know; I feel it too.’ He said and I could hear him crying as well. So that’s what we did, we just cried in each other’s arms until we couldn’t cry anymore, at which point we just sat and held each other. Just feeling another human who felt what I felt, it was all I was asking and that’s what I was getting.

‘Why did it happen?’ I said, sniffing and I felt Lupin taking a stuttered breath.

‘I don’t know.’ He admitted. ‘For the first time, I don’t have any answers for you.’ I could hear the remainder of his tears fighting to escape and we sat for just a few minutes longer. ‘We need to get up.’ Lupin finally said. ‘We can’t stay here.’

‘Why not?’ I felt him chuckle slightly underneath my head.

‘Because, in case you forgot, I am a professor and I have classes to teach.’ He tried to cheer me up, but it didn’t really work. ‘And I haven’t locked that door, I’d rather no one find me sitting on the floor crying with one of my students.’ That made me chuckle and I moved to sit up properly. I wiped my eyes and took a deep breath. ‘Thank you.’ Lupin handed me a handkerchief.

‘What for?’ I frowned, cleaning myself up.

‘For being my friend.’ He said and I could see his red eyes, giving me that intensity that settled me.

‘Any time.’ I smiled.


	32. The Wolf, The Mist and The Maze

The last task was upon me and the death of Doris and Julian was weighing heavily on everyone’s mind, we had gone to their funeral and it seemed the only people there were the people I knew. My parents, Darren, Lupin, Clara, the other volunteers and Dumbledore who made a small speech.

I’d asked Clara to send me a copy of the note they left behind, but I couldn’t quite bring myself to read it. Lupin had read it as soon as it landed in front of him and had told me repeatedly that he would be there if I needed to someone to cry with again, but I just wasn’t ready for that yet.

Instead I spent my last remaining day of freedom with Jack in the courtyard, watching a few other students entertain the crowd for a change. Some of the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students gave their best as well, until the crowd began chanting for myself and Jack to give one of our legendary performances. It was a good day and I was glad I spent it doing what I loved with the people I loved.

I’d gotten dressed slowly the day of the task and walked down to the Quidditch pitch with Jack, Jocelyne, Benji, David and Lupin, everyone was giving me a few last minute pieces of advice, except Lupin who just looked at me, like I was capable of anything.

We stood just outside the maze, again the monitoring devices buzzing around our heads. I kept showing off, feeling myself slip into the performance while Lupin just stood shaking his head and laughing to himself. 

Barty Crouch began speaking and telling everyone that eternal glory waited in the centre of the maze for the champion that could find the cup and win the Tournament. We all looked at each other and knew it was game on, the best would win and they would be the one who deserved it the most that was certain.

Dumbledore gave his own speech and it put a small amount of fear in me. ‘…oh find the cup, if you can, but be careful. You might just lose yourself along the way.’ Again his gaze lingered on me just a second too long for my comfort. Lupin had turned me to face him as I took my starting position.

‘You can do this. Just survive.’ He said. ‘If you survive and you feel you can, I’d like us to talk about things, about everything. I am so very proud of you Angelina, you have gone from being a very curious individual to an exceptionally bright and beautiful young woman and I am glad to have been your friend through this.’

‘Thanks Remus.’ I winked and it made him smile down at me. ‘I actually have something I’d like to talk to you about when this is all over.’ He gave me a slightly worried look, but smiled and nodded all the same. 

I was going to be the second to enter the maze, behind Krum and I watched the display to see him running through and turning corners, going in all sorts of directions. The cannon sounded and I felt it in my chest, I looked to the crowd and saw my family smiling and cheering for me. My brother put his hand on his heart and winked. I smiled, making eye contact with everyone that meant something to me and entered the maze. I was on my own.

I decided not to sprint through the maze like Krum had, instead I walked through, taking note of everything I was hearing and seeing. The device flew around me and mostly hovered behind, it didn’t make any noise and I was grateful that it wouldn’t be a distraction. 

There was a low growl that came from the left turn I was about to take and I quickly turned right instead. I wandered around for so long I felt like I didn’t know which way I was going, but I was pretty sure I could trace my steps back if I needed to. It was suddenly very apparent that I wasn’t alone, I turned around to see a huge, fully grown Blast-Ended Skrewt following me. It made a noise like a screeching and I fell back, rolling out of the way of its giant stinger and only getting a small scratch on my forearm from one of its legs, before I managed to conjure a sharp knife and drive it up into the armour less underside of the creature. Yellow goo had poured out of it and it smelled disgusting. I soon got up and brushed off what I could of the creature’s yellow blood, but I was a moving target for anything that might’ve been attracted to it.

I thought I saw something moving out of the corner of my eye and I definitely heard something running, very fast and it was getting louder. I suddenly sprinted away from the dead Skrewt and didn’t stop until I could barely breathe, there were vines that were moving underneath the thick bushes and I didn’t dare try to find out what it was, not until I needed to anyway. 

I carried on towards what I hoped was the centre of the maze, but in reality I had no idea if I was heading in the right direction. I thought I heard a scream and stopped, listening for it, but it was so far away. I had a brain wave and immediately transformed into my wolf form, the sound was clearer and it was definitely Fleur screaming loudly. I sprinted as fast as my legs could carry me and found her fighting off what appeared to be an overly aggressive tree. 

It moved similarly to the whomping willow and had a similar knot at the bottom, I manoeuvred myself in my human form closer and closer, before touching it and seeing that Fleur had been caught on her leg by one of the branches. We looked at each other for a moment seeing each other’s cuts and bruises, before sprinting off to find the cup again.

This tournament was certainly being taken seriously. I wandered around, hearing things that made my heart race and it seemed the further in I got, the more terrifying the sounds seemed to be. I reached a particularly foggy area of the maze and decided that it definitely wasn’t the place I wanted to be. I’d been there maybe an hour already, just wandering around and I was no closer to the cup. Though it was obvious no one else was either, because we were all still there.

 

Lupin’s heart had been in his mouth when she battled with the Skrewt, she was exceptionally lucky to have escaped with only a cut on her arm. He’d listened to the sounds of awe in the audience when she turned into that elegant wolf and used its senses to find Fleur, though her need to ensure another champion was safe, might’ve cost her precious time.

They’d only been in there fifteen minutes and she was wandering through fog. Lupin whispered for her to move further towards the centre, begging her to move forward. She hadn’t worked it out yet, the logic of the maze. The cup was guarded by deadly creatures, the deadlier they were, the closer she was.

No one else had figured that out yet either, but Lupin prayed someone would. He looked up into the crowd and saw her mother, Anna, she was extraordinarily beautiful and Angelina looked so much like her. Anna was holding her hands in front of her mouth and Lupin could tell everyone in her family was worried. He decided to go up and sit with them for a while, just to keep them company.

‘Do you think she’ll survive?’ Anna had asked him; he just gave her a smile.

‘I think she’s more than capable of surviving.’ Lupin admitted. ‘But she has a need to make sure everyone else is safe and I’m sure, George, you can understand what effect recent events might have on her mind set.’

George looked at Lupin gravely, before giving a quick smile to Anna. ‘She’ll be fine Adrianna.’ He assured his wife. ‘She’s made of tough stuff.’

Darren had given Lupin an odd look. ‘Do you think she’ll win?’ He asked Lupin.

He thought for a moment. ‘It’s barely been fifteen minutes and she’s already fought off a Blast-Ended Skrewt and an aggressive tree. The sooner she realises reaching the cup is essential to getting everyone out of there, the better she’ll do.’ Lupin nodded and Darren’s expression eased.

‘She’s better than me.’ Darren said, more to himself than anything. ‘Even if I had been chosen, I would never have made it this far. She’s better than me.’ Darren looked at the display with pride, as his little sister had found the Griffin’s nest. She had begun using defensive magic only to hold back the mother who was understandably annoyed at the intrusion. 

 

I suddenly saw the way out, just past where the Griffin was standing. I sent a weak stunner her way and made a run for it. I was out of breath and I wondered if Fleur and Krum were still alive. They had to be, I would have seen red sparks if they weren’t, someone would have come for them. It had been hours though, maybe they were dead, maybe this wasn’t over because I had yet to find the cup. Maybe I was alone.

I stood up straight and continued down a path that didn’t look too familiar, but then nothing seemed familiar anymore. I thought I heard someone saying my name and when I turned, I was almost certain I saw the whip of a cloak run around the corner behind me. I didn’t dare go after it, instead I ran in the other direction and ran into Krum and a Sphinx, she had given him a riddle that he looked very stuck with.

‘Do not help him?’ The sphinx said and she looked ready to pounce on Krum. He looked at me and panicked.

‘I don’t know.’ He said and as soon as the words left his mouth, the sphinx jumped up and opened her mouth wide. I sent a powerful stunner her way and she was sent flying backwards, we ran away, sprinting through the bushes until finally we stopped to catch our breath. ‘Thank you.’ He breathed.

I just nodded and we both went our separate ways. The fog had gotten thick again, but I didn’t quite recognise the area I was in, the maze changed, I knew that much, but I wasn’t certain I’d been there before. I tried to clear the fog, but it wouldn’t shift, none of the spells I used seemed to work and I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

I ran through it and again thought I’d heard someone calling my name. ‘Don’t be stupid, no one else is here.’ I said to myself. I continued through the fog, until eventually it cleared and I could hear something around the corner, like someone crying. I poked my head around the bush and saw both Krum and Fleur, crying over the dead bodies of what looked like Krum’s mother and Fleur’s sister, but that wasn’t possible. 

I suddenly felt cold and my body went rigid, like I couldn’t move, like I couldn’t control my body any longer, like I was possessed.

 

‘Come on.’ Lupin whispered to himself. He was back wandering around with the other teachers. ‘You know it’s not real, we did Boggarts, you know you can do it.’ He kept saying as he paced back and forth, feeling the sinking feeling that she might not get past this one. She was so close to the cup, if she could just reach it, it would all be over.

The crowd suddenly cheered and Lupin saw that she was struggling to her feet again and avoiding what looked like the same beach umbrella that had appeared in his classroom. She went over to Krum first, getting him away from his mother, he put up a strong fight.

‘It’s a boggart!’ She shouted. ‘We’re in the middle of a nest, you know we are!’ Krum just looked at her. ‘Think about it, why would your mother be here?’ Suddenly the body disappeared and once again Angelina fell to the ground and once again a beach umbrella appeared as she began crawling over to Fleur.

The other body disappeared and Fleur and Krum just watched Angelina as Lupin was convinced she began losing the fight against the Boggart, but soon a third Umbrella appeared and Lupin let out a breath of relief. The crowd cheered and he couldn’t help himself, he clapped and joined them in celebrating her achievement.

 

‘Why do you keep saving us?’ Krum demanded. I struggled up to my feet. 

‘Because, it’s not worth our lives.’ I said and finally stood up. ‘We’ve been in here so long.’ I shook my head.

‘It has been a few hours.’ Fleur nodded with Krum. I just gave them looks.

‘What are you talking about?’ I frowned, still trying to catch my breath. ‘It’s been days; we’ve been in here days.’ Krum and Fleur looked at each other and that sinking feeling came back. ‘The Mist.’ I breathed.

‘The what?’ Krum said.

Everything suddenly began slipping into place and just as I went to explain, the thick fog came creeping around the corner. ‘Run.’ I said. ‘Run!’ I shouted and we all began sprinting through the maze for what felt like hours, just trying to find somewhere to catch our breath. Fleur fell against the bushes and Krum bent over trying to gulp down more air. 

‘What was that?’ Fleur coughed.

‘The Mist.’ I said, still panting. ‘It’s a non-being, it makes you think more time has passed than really has and it feeds on your panic and fear. I’ve encountered it before, just once and I don’t want to do that again… have you got any cuts?’ I asked and they both looked at me and nodded. ‘How long have you had them?’

‘Few days.’ Krum said, showing me the one on his shoulder.

‘Same.’ Fleur, lifted her trouser leg to show the one I saw her get with the tree.

‘I’ve had mine since the very start and that was at least two weeks ago.’ I explained. They just looked at me blankly. 

‘You said days when we were running.’ Krum was getting frustrated and I understood it, when something occurred to me.

‘We’ve been running for days.’ I said quietly. ‘Except we haven’t, maybe a few minutes, but there’s no way you could have run for any length of time on that leg.’

‘If it’s been weeks or even a day why haven’t they healed yet?’ Fleur was feeling it too.

‘Because it hasn’t been days or weeks, it probably hasn’t even been hours, not really.’ I tried to get them to see. ‘The Mist, it warps time in your mind only. Makes you think you’re in one place longer than you are. We only think it’s been days or weeks , because that's what the Mist wants us to think and now we need to be careful, the Mist seeps into your cuts, that’s how it controls you. It’ll make you see things that aren’t there and it will feed on your reactions to that, you can’t let it panic you, like that.’

Krum and Fleur just looked at each other and I could see the frustration in their faces. 

‘So how do we fight it?’ Krum tried to get his head straight.

The honest truth was I didn’t know. I sighed and looked down at my arm, where the cut I’d had for the last couple of weeks still looked bad enough to get infected.

 

‘What is she talking about?’ Someone said in the crowd. Dumbledore and Lupin shared a look.

Dumbledore shook his head slightly and Lupin realised that this wasn’t part of the plan, the Mist had found its way into the maze all on its own. ‘We can’t do something?’ Lupin asked, feeling the worry in the centre of his chest.

‘They have to complete the maze or send up red sparks.’ Crouch whispered as they all huddled in a circle, trying to figure out what was going on. ‘They are bound by a magical contract and it cannot be broken.’

Lupin just sighed and looked up to see the worried faces of the entire school and her family. He had no idea what was going to happen to her.

 

‘You can’t trust what you’re seeing!’ I yelled at Fleur, who was crying, trying desperately to go towards an entirely empty pathway of the maze. ‘It’s not real!’

‘My sister!’ She screamed and it took both myself and Krum to stop her going towards whatever she was seeing. Soon she stopped and fell into Krum’s arms. ‘No, no, no!’ She kept repeating over and over again.

‘I’m sorry, but it’s not real.’ I said, trying to stop my own tears. ‘It’s just us here, you have to understand that.’

We just sat with each other for what felt like a few days, just crying on and off and trying to think of a plan. Krum and Fleur seemed to take comfort in each other’s pain and I hoped they were helping each other.

I looked over to where I could see Lupin gesturing for me to go with him, when I thought occurred to me. ‘What are you seeing?’ I asked the both of them. ‘I mean in terms of events, good or bad?’

‘Good.’ Krum said and looked in the direction of where I’d seen Lupin.

‘Bad.’ Fleur could no longer bear looking where her sister was presumably being tortured or worse.

‘What are you thinking?’ Krum frowned.

‘I see good; I see someone close to me telling me to go with him.’ I said and pointed to where I could see Lupin, still smiling and wanting me to go with him. ‘You see good in the same direction and Fleur sees bad in the other direction. The Mist has some kind of intelligence; it’s realised that we’re all here and it’s feeding on our panic, we see something tempting in one direction and something not in the other direction. So, question is, which way do we go? Is it leading us towards something worse or is it bluffing?’ 

‘I think it’s trying to split us up.’ Fleur offered. ‘I want to help my sister, you want to go to your lover and you want to help your family.’ She pointed to me and then Krum.

'Wait what?’ I said. ‘He’s not my lover!’

‘I’ve seen that look before,’ Fleur rolled her eyes. ‘If he's not your lover, you want him to be, you're desperate for it.’

I suddenly stood up, feeling incredibly frustrated. ‘I don’t need this, we’ve been here for months! We need to find the cup, it’s the only way out of here! Let’s go and get it.’

Neither one of them moved. ‘It’s not worth it.’ Fleur said and pulled out her wand, she sent up red sparks and Krum jumped to his feet. The maze began closing in from one side and Krum and I sprinted away from Fleur, trying to get away from being devoured by the bushes. Eventually we found a clearing with nothing in it, we tried to catch our breath and looked around.

‘What’s this one?’ Krum asked and I tried to work it out, no clearing was just a clearing. Something was there and it was watching us.

 

Maxime and Pomfrey were first to her. She was hysterical, Fleur couldn’t stop crying and the crowd just watched, clapping politely, but knowing that when Krum and Angelina came out of that maze, they were not going to be the same people that went in. They still thought they’d been in there for months and Lupin doubted they’d come out feeling any different.

Lupin was still slightly distracted, Angelina was seeing someone that she wanted to be with and he felt a small wave of jealousy. It was ridiculous, she was a student, yes she was of age and an adult, but she was a student and not in the least bit interested in him, not that he wanted that, no, that would be inappropriate and unprofessional to say the least. Lupin paced and turned his attention back to the display, where they were now battling with the three wild Manticores.

 

Krum and I dodged where we could, trying desperately to get a shot in, to stun the Manticores, but nothing was working. Krum had been caught by one of the poisonous darts and I caught one of them by the tail, I put the shield charm up and ran over to Krum, he was crying out with the pain and I realised I had no other choice. I transformed into my wolf and growled at the Manticores, it seemed to do the trick, because they backed away and it gave Krum a chance to run down a path. I backed away, following him until it was safe to transform back.

Krum had looked at me in awe and held his heavily bleeding side. I bent down immediately to look at it and it wasn’t good, I could see the poison already having an effect. I tried my best to clean it up with the limited spells I knew and then conjured some bandages to keep it from becoming infected.

‘Thank you.’ Krum panted, I nodded and helped him to his feet. ‘What do we do now?’

‘Find the cup.’ I said. ‘Once we do that, it’s over. I’m starting to think that Mist isn’t part of the maze. It can’t be.’

‘Why not?’ I took as much of his weight as I could as we started walking down another path.

‘Because, when I had my last encounter, Dumbledore said the Mist had been here since before he was at school.’ I explained. ‘I don’t think it can be controlled, I think it found its way here on its own… it’s a non-being, like a dementor.’

‘That means defensive magic can stop it?’ Krum grunted.

‘Yeah, except I don’t know the spell… that’s if there is one.’ I managed to get Krum further down the path and it seemed to take a day. ‘It uses paranoia to bring its victims back.’ I said. ‘That’s how it’s controlling us. Lupin said that…’ I suddenly remembered the conversation I’d had with Lupin. ‘Damn it!... He didn’t say anything about it feeding on panic, he said it feeds on strong emotions, that’s why Fleur saw her sister, that’s why you saw your family and that’s why I saw-‘

Krum suddenly fell to the floor.

‘Krum, are you alright?’ I said, checking his wound, it had already gotten infected. ‘Are you okay?’

‘Find the cup.’ He whispered. ‘You can do it, find the cup… you were the better champion.’ Krum pulled out his wand and sent up red sparks. ‘Find the cup.’ The maze began closing in around us again and I needed to run.

I sprinted hard until I came to a path way that was clear enough for me to catch my breath. I couldn’t do anything to stop it, I slammed my fists into the ground in frustration and screamed until my lungs hurt, before just lying down and letting myself cry. I’d been in the maze for months, I knew I had and now I was entirely alone.

 

The crowd just stared, feeling incredibly sorry for her. Lupin held back all of his tears and put the brave face on, but everyone could see the worry, everyone knew that she was alone and her chances of surviving just got slimmer. Lupin fought every urge in his body to go in after her and bring her back to safety. He couldn’t let himself lose control like that.

 

I kept repeating the same thing over and over again. ‘Find the cup, find the cup. You have to find the cup.’ I whispered under my breath as I turned corners I was pretty sure I’d already turned and walked down paths I was certain I’d seen before.

‘Why don’t you save me?’ Lupin asked, his face was bloodied up and he was begging me to go and save him, but I couldn’t, it wasn’t real.

‘Because you’re not really there. I have to find the cup and go home.’ I said and held my wand out in front of me to light the way. ‘I have to find the cup.’ 

Lupin didn’t stop following me, I ignored him at every turn, everything that was happening with him, everything he said, I couldn’t let him get in my head. I must have been close, I had to be close. The Mist was beginning to get desperate, it was trying every tactic under the sun, torturing him, having him try to seduce me, having him yell at me, but the one that made me spin on my heel and send a stunner straight through him was the accusation that I let Doris and Julian die.

‘It’s true you know.’ The Mist said, I knew it wasn’t really Lupin, it had been nearly a year since I’d seen the real one and I knew what he looked like and how he moved. This one was stale and everything Lupin wasn’t. I carried on walking down the freezing cold path, I could see my breath in front of me as I panted heavily. ‘It was your fault Angie, you didn’t visit, you didn’t write and you let them die.’

‘It’s not true!’ I screamed and squared up to Lupin. ‘They took their own lives, because of what other humans had done to them, instead of trying to help, they cast them out, instead of defending the human side, they only saw the monster, instead of trying to understand, they claimed ignorance and there is nothing I hate more than that!’

The Mist almost looked stunned, almost. He seemed to be thinking very quickly. ‘Angie Lockwood, what an extraordinary creature you are… You’re going the right way, go to the end of this path, take a right and you’ll come to a clearing, you’ve been there before, it’s the Boggarts nest, you have to cross it to get to the centre of the maze.’ Lupin began walking away. ‘Oh, mind out for the dementors, I wonder how much longer you were going to ignore the drop in temperature before you worked it out.’ Lupin suddenly disappeared and I no longer felt that panic, I looked down at my cut and saw a small wave of white smoke escape from the flesh. The Mist was gone; so why did I still feel like it had been a year since I began?

I didn’t dwell on it, I had bigger things to worry about, he mentioned dementors and although my patronus was pretty powerful, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to hold back any more than two. I went to the end of the path and made a choice, I changed into my wolf form and sprinted through the boggart’s nest before changing back, there was a much narrower path and then another clearing. 

The centre of the clearing almost had me in tears. The blue glow of the Triwizard Cup stared out at me and I staggered over to it, I reached out my hand to touch it, but before I could touch it, a black cloak drifted in front of me and I felt everything drain from me, every piece of happiness I felt, every piece of glory that awaited me was being sucked out of me. I fell back and stared up at the blanket of black cloaks all staring down at me, there were maybe six dementors in total and they all glided down for a piece of me.

 

She was screaming, so loudly Lupin was convinced he could hear her for real, he could hear the pain and agony. He looked up at her family and George had his arm around Anna who was crying, but Darren along with the rest of the crowd stood and prayed that she would make it. He had his hand on his heart, the same way he had just as she entered the maze. He begged for his sister’s survival with a simple gesture and for whatever reason Lupin decided to do the same. He placed his hand gently over his heart and begged under his breath for her to stand up and reach the cup. ‘You’re so close, just stand up.’ He said.

 

I could feel it, I could feel death wrapping his arms around my body, making it heavy and suffocating me. I remembered what Lupin had said about the dementors and how they found it harder to influence animals, if I could just change I would have a better chance and getting to the cup. I focussed as hard as I could on Lupin’s words and I had a small lift that I took advantage of.

‘Expecto Patronum!’ I shouted and a giant wolf appeared, driving the dementors back, but only for a short while. I was at the base of the podium and my body was weak, but I could do it, I could reach the cup and get out of there. I could go home. One of the dementors came in for another taste of me and I fell down, feeling life leave me. The cold darkness finding every corner of me and digging its home. Home. Darren was waiting for me, my brother thought I could do this, he had placed his hand on his heart and told me I could do this.

‘Expecto Patronum!’ I roared, feeling my throat bleed. The wolf appeared again and growled, taking down the dementors and I used every piece of the little energy I had left, to launch myself at the cup. I fell onto soft grass, seeing the orange light of the torches surrounding the entrance to the maze. I did it.

I looked around and saw the stunned crowd staring down at me. Krum was having his wounds seen to and Fleur had a blanket around her watching me. I was home. I stumbled to my feet, feeling my lungs fill with fresh air. For a moment I just stared around at the crowd, just taking in the fact that I was home, I was back with my friends and family and it felt so good. I swung the cup up in victory and the crowd erupted in cheers, I watched them not really knowing if I could stay like that, but soon I was climbing the stairs and standing on the edge of the stands, feeling the crowd applaud and cheer my name. People reached up to touch me and get closer to the cup, but I just stared at my friends and family and watched their relieved faces light up. Darren still had his hand on his heart and gave me a wink.

Soon, I felt my body weakening. I sat on the stand and watched as Lupin placed the cup down and reached back up to get me some kind of medical attention. He put me down on a bench where Madame Pomfrey had suddenly appeared and began assessing my injuries. ‘Is it you?’ I asked him, he looked worried and rigid and I had to make sure I wasn’t still seeing things.

‘Angelina.’ Lupin sighed. ‘It’s me.’ I watched him smile and that was how I knew, I knew it was him, he called me Angelina. I wrapped my arms around him and felt the tears pour out of me. ‘It’s okay, you did it, you survived and you won.’ Lupin pushed me back down to get my cut on my forearm seen to.

‘You said I could do it.’ I said, through my tears.

‘And you did.’ Lupin smiled and handed me the cup. ‘This belongs to you, you earned it.’ I held onto the handle and didn’t let it out of my sight until Madame Pomfrey forced me to lie back on the stretcher and I felt the pull of sleep that I hadn’t felt in a year take me away.


	33. Sleeping Peacefully

I had been asleep for a few days and when I woke, it was very early in the morning, the sun was just about visible on the horizon. It was quiet and I felt a small whip of panic go through my chest. I opened my eyes to see someone sleeping in a chair next to me. Darren. I sighed and felt a small lift. My body was heavy and I ached in so many places, but nothing was searing with pain, I looked down at my arm and saw that it had healed over finally. I knew it hadn’t really been a year, but it felt like it.

‘Angie.’ I voice came from the other side of my bed. I turned my head properly and saw my father, waking up and smiling, I could feel the tears building in the corner of my eyes.

‘Dad.’ I whispered, not being able to make any more noise than that. He immediately kissed my forehead and I could see he was crying as well.

‘Oh Angie, I’m so glad.’ He said quietly. ‘Right, let’s get you back on your feet.’ He said and kissed me again, not wanting to leave. He wandered towards Pomfrey’s office and came back with a goblet full of some unknown potion. ‘Do you think you can sit up?’ He set the goblet down and I frowned, trying to move the rest of my body. ‘Here.’ My father began helping me sit up straight so that he could adjust my pillows for me to lean back. It was an enormous amount of effort on my part and Darren had woken up, walking sleepily over to another bed where my mother was sleeping peacefully. 

I couldn’t quite hold the goblet on my own just yet and needed help to drink the foul potion. I finally, finished and tried to catch my breath back.

‘Angie.’ My mother had come to sit next to me and held my hand, I smiled and realised how worn down everyone seemed to be and I suddenly felt immensely sorry for them. 

We spent the next few hours, just waiting for the rest of the school to wake up and Pomfrey eventually came down. She looked just as tired and I wondered if she’d slept much during the Tournament. 

According to both my father and Madame Pomfrey, I needed to stay in the hospital wing for maybe another two nights, before they would consider letting me leave to go back to the dormitory. Everyone had come to visit, Jack had watched my father like a hawk and constantly asked questions about what he was giving me, until he realised that I really didn’t want to know what it was I drinking, just as long as it helped, I didn’t need the details.

I eventually began to feel a little more like myself, I could just about hold a conversation without getting tired, but no one really cared if I needed to stop, they just wanted me to get better. Darren hadn’t left my side and I loved him for it.

‘I’m so proud of you Angie.’ He said when my parents had gone home for a couple of hours, just to recharge. ‘I was terrified obviously, but I don’t think there was anyone who wasn’t. I’m just glad I got my sister back.’ I smiled and put my hand on my heart. He did the same and gave me a wink. ‘I’ll leave you in peace, Lupin’s just come in and I imagine you two have a lot to talk about. I’ll be back in an hour or so.’ Darren stood up and kissed my forehead. ‘I love you Angie, even if you are a pain in the arse.’ He made me laugh a little, which eventually turned into a cough and he gave me an apologetic smile before shaking Lupin’s hand and wandering out of the hospital wing.

Lupin looked a little worse for wear, like he used to look around the full moon, tired and worn down. He sat in the chair previously occupied by my father and smiled weakly. ‘Angelina.’ He said quietly and shook his head. ‘You always survive, without fail and without doubt, you always survive.’ He smiled again and lifted his leg over the other. ‘Do you feel any better?’

‘Not as tired.’ I said, feeling the familiar croakiness my voice had.

‘Well, that has to be a good thing right?’ He offered and I nodded. We stayed silent for a few moments, before I let a few tears go, just remembering the things I’d seen in the maze.

‘I was so scared.’ I said through the burning tears. Lupin brought the chair closer and held my hand while I sat just crying. ‘I thought I was going to die.’

‘But you didn’t.’ Lupin stroked the back of my hand. ‘You didn’t, you survived where no one else could, you were haunted, you fought off creatures even I haven’t encountered and you never gave up. You didn’t give in and you inspired so many people… everyone is talking about it, the first and second years are telling stories, that you’ll be glad to hear are getting more and more extravagant with every telling.’ 

I chuckled a little.

‘You’ve made your family proud.’ Lupin smiled. ‘You captivated your friends and you proved just how special you really are to anyone who had doubts.’

I watched Lupin for a while and I saw the sincerity that I’d sorely missed. ‘I saw things in that maze. I know they weren’t real, but they felt real.’ I frowned.

‘I know; we could see you on the display.’ Lupin nodded. ‘It wasn’t a pleasant sight… if you want to talk about it, I’ll always be here for you.’

‘I don’t know if I can say it just now.’ 

‘That’s okay, that’s fine.’ Lupin shook his head and gave another smile. ‘We can talk about anything you like. We don’t even have to talk if you don’t want to.’

I sniffed and sat up a little more. ‘Will you tell me what I’ve missed?’ I asked, not really feeling up for talking anymore. Lupin just smiled and sat back, he ran his hand through his hair as he figured out where to start.

I enjoyed listening to him talk, but before I knew it, I was waking up to everyone around me chatting away about one thing or another. For a while I just watched Jack and David talking with Darren, Jocelyne and Lupin laughing with my mother and my dad and Benji looking deep in conversation. I felt happy for the first time in a long time and just watched as eventually they realised I was awake.

‘There she is.’ Darren said, smiling. ‘Bit rude of you to fall asleep while Professor Lupin was giving you the news of the day.’ I felt myself chuckle as did everyone else. 

‘Let’s have a look.’ My father said and came around to check I was okay. ‘You look good to me, I’ll see what Poppy thinks, see if we can get you out of here, even if it’s just for a walk outside.’ He wandered off to find Madame Pomfrey.

Lupin had offered my mother the seat closest to me and she sat holding my hand for a while. Everyone else had begun telling me what was going on at the school and I found out that the presentation of the cup had been postponed due to the fact that I was still in the hospital wing, but the students from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons were still at Hogwarts and would remain until I was well enough to receive the cup properly.

‘It was on Krum and Fleur’s asking,’ Jocelyne explained. ‘They wanted to show you some respect for winning and decided to stay and wait for you.’

Madame Pomfrey had come over and had done just about the same things my dad had and sighed. ‘Well, I suppose a little fresh air can’t hurt.’ She said and let me leave to go outside for a while, as long as I promised to come straight back if I got tired.

My mother had helped me put my jeans and jumper on and Darren had given me his arm to help me get outside. My legs were a little shaky and it took a long time just to get to the front doors, mostly because other students had congratulated me and shook my hand as they went past.

We stopped at the front doors and I was already out of breath.

‘You want to stop or head for the lake?’ Darren asked.

‘Stay here.’ I panted and we all sat on the stone steps, just watching the summer afternoon wash in. Jack and Darren had soon begun entertaining everyone with their tricks and I laughed, feeling myself getting progressively more tired. I looked over to Lupin who was looking better than he had done previously and I smiled, I didn’t know why, but seeing him laughing and joking around made me happy. 

Soon it was time for me to head back inside and I felt notably better for getting out of the hospital wing for a few hours. My parents and Darren had to leave to get back to work and kissed me goodbye, wishing me luck for the presentation ceremony that would be held the following evening. I’d been waking up on and off that night as images of what I’d seen flashed across my mind and I was beginning to think that it would get worse before it got better.

 

Jack and David had come with me for another walk around the school the morning of the ceremony and again I felt better, it wasn’t as much effort and I was able to thank the students properly for congratulating me, before I went back to take a nap before the feast and keep my energy up for it.

Lupin had been waiting outside the Great Hall with me, it was appropriate that the mentor be the one to hand the cup to the winner and I was grateful that I would have Lupin to help me reach the podium without collapsing or falling over at all. He wore a dark red shirt with his green-grey jacket and bow tie and looked very smart, while I only stood out because I was in my black jeans, red t shirt and black blazer. No one else would be in school uniform so I just wore something smart.

‘Nervous?’ Lupin asked as I sat on the stone steps and tried to conserve my energy.

‘A little.’ I admitted. ‘You?’

‘Very.’ Lupin chuckled and sat beside me. 

‘I’ve been thinking about something.’ I said, frowning a little. ‘A few things actually… I want to spend some time in the Forest of Dean this summer, I’ll do the rights campaign and I’ll do what I need to for that, but I’d like to spend some time camping out and watching all the things that live there. I’m old enough to do magic outside of school and if I can find someone to come with me… I just think it would be good.’

Lupin nodded thoughtfully. ‘The Forest of Dean has a lot of creatures living in it, I’m sure you’ll have a great time. Why not see if David would accompany you? I heard he was thinking about a career in caring for magical creatures. He’s good in Herbology and Defence Against the Dark Arts, I’m sure you’ll both have a great time. But be sure to write and let me know what you find.’ 

I smiled and listened to the ceremony go on, there was a small applause and I wondered if Fleur and Krum were proud of their achievements as well.

‘What else were you thinking about?’ Lupin asked, I frowned. ‘You said you were thinking about a few things?’

‘Yeah.’ I looked away and thought hard about what I was about to ask. ‘I want to see a werewolf.’ Lupin’s face didn’t have the reaction I was expecting. He sort of sighed and nodded in understanding. ‘You knew I was going to ask?’

‘I thought it was only a matter of time.’ Lupin admitted and leaned back on the steps, stretching out his long legs. ‘You understand enough to know what you’re asking and you’re intelligent enough to know what could happen if it goes wrong. I can’t stop you seeking out a werewolf to watch during transformation, I just ask that you find someone you trust enough and you do it in your animagus form, werewolves react neutrally to animals and cannot tell the difference between an animagus and another animal.’

‘I trust you, Remus.’ I said, still not quite adjusting to saying his name. Lupin leaned forward again and sighed. ‘Please? I can wait, I can wait until a time of your choosing, I just want to see it happen, just once and you said it should be someone I trusted… You said the potion worked, it’s as safe as it’s going to get right?’

Lupin let out a small laugh. ‘It’s never safe.’ He shook his head and looked at me. ‘I’ll ask Clara if she can help you. She’s much more flexible with these things than I am.’

I nodded, figuring it was the best deal I was going to get out of Lupin for now. But there was one more thing I wanted to ask.

‘Before I went into the maze, you said you wanted to talk about things?’ I watched his face change a little.

‘I do, but then you were sleeping through me giving you news updates.’ We both chuckled a little. ‘I guess, I’m waiting until you’re feeling better before we talk about anything important.’

‘Can I ask what it is you want to talk about?’

‘You can ask, but I don’t want you distracted from everything that’s happening right now. It’s nothing to worry about, I just want to know where you stand on certain topics.’ He assured me, but I could tell it was something much heavier than he was letting on.

‘Okay, I trust you.’ I smiled. ‘I want you to know something though, something that happened and I’m not sure what it means.’

Lupin frowned and waited for me to either continue or to tell him I would wait for another time. ‘I only saw one thing in the maze, the Mist only ever took one form all those times I was talking to it and it was trying to distract me and get me to do things I didn’t want to do… it was you.’ I watched Lupin’s face drop and he did some very quick thinking.

‘We’re ready for you.’ McGonagall came out of the Great Hall and looked at the both of us, her smiled faded slightly, but Lupin cleared his throat and stood up. He helped me to my feet, but avoided eye contact. We walked down the tables and I tried my hardest to enjoy the applause, I could see Krum and Fleur waiting, standing at the podium and clapping for me as well. 

Lupin held out his hand for me to step up onto the podium as well and I saw the intense look again, the one that calmed me. Most of the ceremony was a blur, I was still recovering and Lupin handed me the cup, he gave me a tight smile and stood back to applaud with everyone else. I looked out at the crowd and lifted the cup high above my head, feeling that energy again, the sense of achievement and I felt happy, truly and entirely happy.


	34. The Forest of Dean

The Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students eventually said their goodbyes and went home a few days later. I’d miss Krum and Fleur in a strange way, but maybe I’d just miss the competition. David had agreed to come with me for a few days to the Forest of Dean and we had begun planning our trip, finding out what creatures we might encounter there. Lupin had yet to speak to me again and I was too busy with the end of the school year, planning my trip and getting ready for the rights campaign to ask him what his thoughts were on what I’d seen in the maze.

As I predicted, the flashing images had become full blown nightmares and on occasion I’d ask Madame Pomfrey for something to help me have dreamless sleeps. I’d spent a lot of time learning more healing spells as I was learning it was something that I could have done with in the maze to keep me going and maybe to keep Krum in there with me. I could conjure bandages if I needed to and close wounds easy enough and I left for the summer with the intention of getting a new book on some of the potions I might have been able to make quickly enough in the Forest if either myself or David got hurt.

The campaign was fast approaching and I’d been getting dressed for the day when I looked around my bedroom. My Order of Merlin First Class hung on the wall just next to my door and next to it was a letter of approval to make me the world’s leading expert in lycanthropy. The Triwizard Cup, or at least the duplicate I was given to keep, sat on the set of drawers just below it and I could feel the pride. 

I just laughed and went to find my t shirt when I saw the letter Clara had sent me. It was the one that had the last words from Doris and Julian and I still hadn’t read it yet. It still felt like a year since they died and unlike everyone else, I had recovered from it; but I still couldn’t bring myself to read the note.

The rights campaign was upon us and I was ready this time, I’d written to Clara and Lupin to tell them the date and time I’d be making the speech and Clara had promised to be there. I had yet to hear from Lupin. I’d gone to the ministry and seen a news board that still had the picture of me at the Triwizard ceremony receiving the cup, Jack had pointed it out and I felt my face go red.

‘That’s so embarrassing.’ I groaned and tried to move everyone away from it, but eventually I just walked off towards the campaign stage, running into Argus Taylor as I did.

‘Angie!’ He exclaimed and took my hand to shake.

‘Argus, how are you?’ I smiled.

‘Really wonderful, very excited for your speech.’ He nodded. ‘I would like to ask though, have you thought anymore about writing a book?’

‘Erm… Not really, I had the Triwizard Tournament last year and my NEWTs this year, I’m not sure where I’ll find the time.’ I laughed.

‘Yes and well done, I heard it was rigorous to say the least.’ He gave me a small wink. ‘Anyway, I’ll let you go, good luck with the speech and can I get five minutes with you after it?’

‘Of course, you’ve been very good to us, I’d be more than happy to give you some time.’ I said, smiling. Everyone had caught up and we made our way to the campaign stage. I flicked through my cue cards and hoped I was saying the right things, I needed to, I couldn’t let Doris and Julian die for nothing. Something occurred to me just as I reached the podium, something that I’d already said and it seemed important somehow.

‘Ladies and Gentlemen,’ I began slowly, I slipped off my glasses for a moment. ‘The one thing I hate beyond anything, without a shadow of a doubt is when those in charge of the system, those in a position to do what is right versus what is easy, claim ignorance… We’re all standing here today, presenting our cases, hoping someone will listen to us and do something to make a difference. Well, we are the difference makers, we need to show each other the respect we all demand for our causes, we cannot claim ignorance, we have to do something to prevent the worst case scenario for each of the people we are trying to help, we need to be the difference makers. I hope you’ll all bear that in mind while you present your speeches.’ I slipped my glasses on and began my speech.

I left the stage with a roaring applause echoing as I did, I hoped and begged I would make a difference. I didn’t remember seeing Lupin in the crowd, but I hoped I’d just missed him, instead of him not showing at all. My parents and Darren were very proud as usual and Darren had told us he’d been approached by a team in Japan to play Quidditch for them. He was going to Japan, finally.

We all celebrated well into the night and David and I made our way to the Forest of Dean the next day. We took a portkey to Gloustershire with only a small bag each that we had charmed to contain more than would naturally fit inside a rucksack. David had changed so much over the years, especially since I’d first met him on the first train to Hogwarts, he was very handsome, tall and strong, but he still had the same smile.

David was much more of an expert in camping than I was and found us a good spot to set up our tent, David had taken care of most of the setting up and I just wandered around the area, taking note of where we were and what was around. There were a few burrows and some strange trees that could possibly have been home to the types of creatures I was looking to find. I began making notes on the things I was seeing and what I thought could live there, before I went back to find David had finished setting up and carried my bag inside for me.

I stepped inside and he had music playing quietly in the corner of the living room, it was cosy and warm, a small closed off fire pit sat in front of two soft armchairs and a small kitchen and dining area was off to the other side. There was a longer table than we needed and David had set my bag down on top of it.

‘I borrowed the tent from Benji’s parents.’ David admitted. ‘Mine had a massive hole in it from camping last summer and I’ve not been away since, so haven’t replaced it. What do you think?’

‘It’s great.’ I said, still discovering little rooms off to each side, before David wanted to go and have a look at the river I had told him about previously.

We talked about the subjects we both wanted to do well in for our NEWTs on the way and he told me about the magical creatures he was interested in caring for when he left.

‘Thestrals are fascinating.’ He said as we begun making our way onto the rockier path I’d found the last time. ‘They’re fairly strange creatures, but you never hear about them attacking anyone unless trained to, it’s fairly safe, but then I’m not exactly going to study dragons. Not after what I saw you go through.’ He chuckled and I couldn’t help but join in. 

‘It seems so long ago.’ I sighed.

‘I can imagine.’ David said sadly. I could just about see the clearing I sat in last time and went forward towards it with David on my heels. ‘Wow.’ He breathed as we watched the twinkling clear water. 

 

We spent the days wandering around the forest and a little of the night until we were too tired to carry on, and on the last night we had decided to walk back to the river to watch the nocturnal creatures come out. I’d been making notes on some of the things we were seeing until nothing new was happening and instead we just enjoyed watching the creatures go about their lives in peace.

‘So, can I ask a personal question?’ David suddenly asked quietly so as not to disturb the nocturnal Anglerfish that were swimming around in front of us. I nodded. ‘What’s the deal with you and Lupin? I mean I know that you two are close, but is it something more? I’m not judging either of you, but I’m just asking the question.’

I frowned and thought about it. ‘I don’t think so.’ I shook my head. ‘Lupin is a good man… I saw him in the maze and I’m not sure what that means. I asked him what he thought about it.’

‘What did he say?’

‘Nothing, it was just before the ceremony and we were called in before he could answer.’ I sighed. ‘I wrote to him about the rights campaign and I’ve been keeping notes of things I’ve seen here that might interest him, but I think he’s avoiding me… What do you suppose it means?’

David just laughed a little, trying to keep quiet. ‘Well, if you’re really asking, I think it means you probably like each other more than a friend likes another friend.’ I just frowned. ‘So, there’s this girl I like in my Care of Magical Creatures class, her name is Cassandra, she’s a Ravenclaw and she’s so incredibly smart and beautiful, but she doesn’t notice when I do things like intentionally stand near her when we need to pair up, or when I’m staring at her because I like the way she speaks or does something that intrigues me. She’s a special girl, but she doesn’t notice me.’ David just gave me a look that said he was very much in love with Cassandra. ‘Everyone calls her Cassie, but I like the way she looks at me when I say Cassandra, it makes me feel good, like she doesn’t mind it as much when I say it. Is any of this sounding familiar?’

‘My dad calls my mum Adrianna, even though she hates it, she always gets annoyed when anyone calls her that, she prefers Anna.’ I suddenly put two and two together. ‘I don’t like being called Angelina, but Lupin calls me that all the time.’

‘Exactly, I think we can probably assume the feeling is mutual.’ David winked. ‘You never correct him.’ We sat and thought for a while about Lupin and Cassandra and what it felt like when we were around them.

‘So, are you going to ask her out?’ I nudged David and he just chuckled.

‘I wanted to ask her to the Yule Ball, but I chickened out.’ He admitted. 

‘Ask her out David, the worst she’ll say is no.’ I tried to encourage him.

He just chuckled again and gave me a smile. ‘You’re a wolf.’ He said, a little out of the blue. ‘What I mean is, so is Lupin, maybe you were meant to be together? Cassandra’s patronus is a horse and mine doesn’t have a shape yet, Lupin doesn’t think it’s a horse though.’

‘Lupin is different, he’s only a wolf because he was forced to be.’ I argued. ‘He says that a patronus takes on the form of the animal we most represent, he’s not much like a wolf in my opinion… Yours could be an elephant.’ I suggested and we both began giggling a little.

‘Maybe we should get back?’ David said as the Anglerfish began swimming away. ‘We should sleep before we go home tomorrow.’

‘Agreed.’ I yawned and we made our way back to the tent to get some much needed sleep. Through some unknown force of habit, I began making the dreamless potion so that I didn’t have to endure any nightmares that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The rating is about to go up, so check out the rest of the story in Lockwood Part 2 :) love Jadders92 xx


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